 
CHAOS PANZER

Justin Villanueva

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2013

Smashwords Edition, License Notes.

* * * * *

Thank you for downloading this free eBook. You are welcome to share it with your friends. This book may be reproduced, copied and distributed for non-commercial purposes, provided the book remains in its complete original form, with the exception of quotes used in reviews.

Your support and respect for the property of this author is appreciated.

This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental, because they are all based from a parallel world where aliens exist.

Adult Reading Material

This book may contain scenes with profanity, sex and violence.

*****

This work is dedicated to my parents, my best friend, and to all the friends and peers who supported me in this endeavor. Above all others, this book is for my girlfriend, who introduced me to the wonderful world of written fiction and storytelling.

Thank you.

I hope you enjoy the story as much as I enjoyed writing it.

*****

CHAOS PANZER

*****

## PHASE 1

## CONNECTIVITY TESTING

"I'm so lucky!" said the last dimwit as he waltzed out of the examination room. I get to see these shitheads almost every day—fresh young tributes, so eager to put themselves up for grabs—hopping merrily about like they've just won the lottery. It was simply annoying. Who would've thought humans would evolve to the point where the prey would willingly sacrifice themselves to the predators, with a smile on their faces and a resumé in their hands? But I guess I can't judge them, since I was no different a few years ago. "Recruitment Area," it said on the door—should be more like "Sacrificial Altar" or "Volunteers for the War."

"Mr. del Rio?"

I searched for the voice and found the HR at the last window. She was quite pretty, but the dark layer under her eyes—not to mention her cold flat tone—was a complete turn off. Was this something to worry about? Was this something new at my company? Well, not really. Not if you've been here long enough. In fact, I would even consider it a company trademark.

"Hi..." I greeted, reading the badge hanging from her neck. "Patricia?"

"Hello Mr. del Rio," she said, pointing here and there, forms everywhere. "Here is the replacement ID you requested. Please sign here and here and here."

One thing I really hate, the one thing you need to do to survive in this over competitive world—sign forms. I guess that's what separates us from the children. If you think about it, signing forms is like our rights of passage to adulthood, isn't it?

"Will that be all, Patricia?" I said, flexing my numb fingers.

"Yes. How did you lose your ID again?"

"It was snatched with my wallet while I was on a bus ride from Guadalupe," I said, quite annoyed that she made me recall the incident.

"Okay. Please be careful next time," she said as she filed all the forms together. "EDSA is a very _dangerous_ place."

"I know, right?"

This is the world I live in. "It's more fun in the Philippines." Yeah right! Ever since we lost the Spratly Islands to China— _everything_ changed. I mean, who would've thought an alien spacecraft would crash on these forsaken islands? Who would've thought that aliens actually existed in this day and age? And why for all the chances, did they land there and not just on the Philippines itself? It's kind of funny if you think about it. I mean, during the _War of the Worlds_ era way back 1938, some people actually believed them, and nobody would want an alien spaceship landing anywhere near. But now things have changed. Now people actually _want_ a spaceship to crash on their backyard.

Why? Some call it "The Anti-matter," others call it "The Miracle." The Church calls it "The Second Coming of Christ." Heck, where is He? Or did he just leave this gift behind for us? When the spaceship landed, everyone was afraid, but along fear came excitement. For the first time in human history, alien contact was just around the corner. But there was none. No aliens, no life-forms—just this big ship with an orb inside it. "The Orb of Power," "The God-Particle," the list goes on. They can practically have dozens of names for this thing, but here at _Tantuco Solutions_ , we call it "The Source."

Imagine sustainable energy, _unlimited_ sustainable energy. Sounds redundant? Well, imagine an electrical source, never ending, never dying, and the most comfortable thing about is you don't have to do anything for it to work. It just pumps and pumps electricity, enough for the whole world. But The Source is in the spaceship, and the spaceship is in Spratly Islands, and the Spratly Islands belong to China now. And I almost forgot about those damn _panzers_. No, I'm not talking about German tanks if you're some caveman living under a stone. I'm talking about the machines the aliens left with The Source. China got hold of them first and found a way to reproduce them. Now they're practically everywhere. As the sore losers, our country is stuck with buying this crap as our colonial mentality never washed out. _Made in China_ anyone? Like I said, "It's more fun in the Philippines."

It was two in the afternoon. I stared at my wallpaper as my cute _Kulimlim_ smiled back at me. You see, I never really dreamt of becoming a corporate man. I used to dream of becoming a journalist, a comic artist, or even a novelist. But my father said these were dead end jobs, so I took on a different path. After graduating high school, I found myself in the era of nurses. Yes, nurses were so in-demand back then, even full-fledged doctors would turn their backs on their more-than-ten-years education and apply for an RN position abroad. I was never really a join-the-bandwagon type of guy, so I went my own way.

I always liked animé and RPGs, so I decided to enter the realm of animation and multi-media. I searched online for schools that offered such courses, but they were a little off the budget. Well, I guess they were _way_ out of the budget back then. It was only after I graduated college that my father really kicked off with his career. Anyway, my relatives later pointed me to this well known college at Lipa, Batangas.

As I looked at the brochure, I browsed through the available courses in the IT Department: Bachelor of Science in Computer Science Major in Panzer Programming, Mechanical Engineering Major in Panzer Piloting and Maintenance, Panzer this, Panzer that. They should have called it _Panzer_ Department instead. Anyway, it looked like I wasn't going to get animation or game development here, so I chose the first one, and the rest was history.

Bored and a little drowsy, I decided to check my payslip. Working at a panzer company has its perks, too. The pay is a lot higher compared to other companies, and if you're not an impulsive panzer-buying type of guy, then you'll be able to keep most of what you earn. The only problem though, way before Tantuco and the panzers came into the picture, is of course— _tax._ Tax here, tax there, tax everywhere. _Everything_ is fucking taxable. The higher the salary goes, so does the tax. And did I forget to mention how much? The vat is now 19 percent, thanks to another brilliant senator's proposal. It annoys me, really, that the government makes so much by doing so little. It's like the people are paying protection money to a bunch of bullies and gangsters who don't really help us when we need them.

_A story that I will never forget was the time I went to_ _Customs_ _in Pasay to pick up a package from my relatives._ Can you believe the overall cost was almost twice the actual price of the item including the shipping fee? Upfront, they would have a sign saying something like, "The only thing you'll need to pay for is 19 percent of the declared value of the item." But when you actually get inside and the guy wearing the barong starts to compute, your jaw will drop from the overall sum. They have so many hidden charges, I tell you. They won't even explain it to you unless you ask them. And do you know what really annoys me the most?—the receipt. The receipt alone cost me something around 550 pesos and I heard this has gotten a lot higher since Tantuco came to town. What the fuck, right? I mean, a receipt is simply a proof of purchase, not something that you would actually pay for. Sigh... That's why I love our country. Viva Pilipinas!

I began to check my email. I noticed a _Non-Work_ message from Steve. I wanted to open it, but I already learned my lesson. Steve once sent me an email and it turned out to be a porn page that almost got me fired if my boss had caught me. I decided to open the email at my place later.

"Ayel? " a voice said behind my cube. "Are you there?"

"Yes Elaine?"

"Timesheet," she said with her usual flat tone. "Right now."

"Yes, boss!" I said as I was busy searching for the latest movie trailers. My teammates were laughing like a mime behind me, as if they were a TV on mute. The thing about corporate work is it isn't enough that you go to work eleven hours a day (thanks to India), but we also have to _prove_ that we are working by plotting down task after task. After a few hours, a friend of mine Skyped me:

metalbird2000: "Hey, man. How's it going?"

masterAyel: "Nothing much... Same old, same old... (-_-) ZzZz"

metalbird2000: "Hey, did you hear about Steve?"

masterAyel: "No. What happened?"

metalbird2000: "Man! You need to talk to people. Something happened last night. He..."

masterAyel: "What?"

metalbird2000: "I don't think he made it."

masterAyel: "Really?" My eyes rolled around. "I just saw him yesterday, rushing as usual."

metalbird2000: "Well, you see, it hasn't really been officially announced. You won't even hear this in the news yet. Not that you watch anyway."

masterAyel: "C'mon dude... I know you. You never really liked him."

metalbird2000: "I'm not kidding man. It's sad, really. You know we had a few drinks with him and I admit he was a little weird, but cool anyways."

masterAyel: "Are you for real?"

metalbird2000: "I'm telling you! They saw him."

Ric was always the joker. Steve may have been a little _different_ , but this was going way too far.

masterAyel: "Hey, Ric. GTG now! See you tomorrow."

metalbird2000: "Ayel wai—" I closed my messenger before he could finish.

The clock struck eight in the evening. I realized I haven't eaten anything since morning because of the long line at the HR window. I really hate lines. Anyway, I decided to go to McDonalds and order a Happy Meal. I like collecting this stuff. Actually, I still have my Dalmatian collection intact. Satisfied with my feast and spoils, I went through the parking lot and noticed Steve's car was still there. It would have been strange, but that was how Steve was—a _workaholic_. He was one of the few remaining batch mates of mine in the company. He never really talked that much and we only got to drink with him a few times. After a while, I managed to get a cab and went straight home.

Once I arrived, I smiled at the sight of my dirty old pad. Though it was called a "condo," it wasn't anywhere near those fancy, high-rise units you would find in Eastwood. Mine was just the average place with a kitchen on the left, the TV area in the middle, and a small room for the bed, not to mention the occasional rat problem which was solved when I brought in Kulimlim. As for the window, it was just beside the TV with a view of the busy EDSA highway. Overall, it was perfect; it had everything I needed. But what I liked about my condo the most was the fact that it didn't rely on any panzer appliance at all. Can you believe they even have panzer washing machines? Jeez... As for electricity, the whole building is still using good old _Meralco_ instead of The Source, which just made my bills so much cheaper.

Tilting my head to the floor, my cute little Kulimlim rushed to my feet and began pushing herself against me. She greeted me with a soft meow.

"You're hungry, eh?" I teased her. "Time to eat!"

Moving towards the sink, I opened a can of tuna and she feasted. I then proceeded to the TV area. Tired of the long day, I dropped like a sack of rice on the coach, used The Force to pull the remote, and switched on the TV. Nothing on the news about Steve though. A poor victim was not only robbed, but his cell phone was nailed to his forehead. Talk about weird. On _channel 7,_ there was a rape victim. On _5,_ we had a fire down in Cubao, plus another rape victim, this time by her uncle. I turned to _channel_ _2._ On the headlines, there was a report of another bombing by this terrorist group called "Kalayaan." I sighed. This is why I don't watch the news. I turned to _Discovery—_ "The Evolution of Panzers" was showing. It looked good; I like this sort of things.

By then I realized that panzer technology had really grown into an everyday commodity. From the holographic smart phones, to the anti-gravity cars, everything was now built on panzer technology, and panzer technology was powered by only one source, _The_ Source. This gave China power over all nations, establishing itself as the new dominant superpower after America lost the short-lived Chino-American War. Lately though, Scarborough Shoal has been the topic these recent years. Rumor has it that they also found a spacecraft over there—which may not be far from the truth—but no official news has been announced as to date. My eyes began to fall on me. I turned off the TV and decided to dose off.

As darkness slowly engulfed the room, a shadow darted past the window. Suddenly, I was alert as my physics professor searching for sleeping students. My pad was eight storeys high—no burglar would be stupid enough to climb even if there was a fire escape—but then I remembered that my previous apartment was also robbed, only two floors lower than my current. Kulimlim started to hiss; her back arched high. I felt goosebumps on me; my heart pounded on my chest.

I thought they waited for the place to be empty?

I groped for my Beretta under the couch—it was loaded. I flipped the safety. I never imagined I would be actually using it. My father and I used to go to firing ranges, but this was no target shooting. As the TV completely went off, darkness enveloped the room. The only faint source of light came from the window. I heard steps again, clunking along the rusty hinges of the fire escape. Kulimlim sat just below the window pane. She was waiving her tail; her eyes reflected whatever light came from outside. After a second, the footsteps stopped. Kulimlim then released a rumbling purr, followed by a piercing yowl. I pulled the hammer and balanced the front sight and the back, blindly targeting whatever was outside the window.

And then, suddenly, another yowl came from outside.

"My God, Kulimlim!" I caught my breath, laughing my heart out. "I almost shot a cat!"

It was just another one, probably Ms. Reyes' from above. I realized all that news made me paranoid. I shook off the bullet from the chamber and flipped the safety again. After hiding it back under the couch, I sat down on my computer table and opened the desktop.

I remembered Steve's email and decided to give it a go. I opened IE.

NO INTERNET CONNECTION.

That's weird.

I was too tired to figure it out. I dived to my bed and Kulimlim went on to her favorite spot—my head. A few minutes later, I was off to _Neverland_.

## PHASE 2

## NEW JOINER

The next day, still wearing my pants, I checked the time on my phone but found something else.

"Hey..." the message said. I had no record of the number, the last digits _6750._

"Who is this?"I replied.

MESSAGE NOT SENT.

I forgot. I didn't really text that much—barely used my phone besides accepting calls from my boss, my mom, or the occasional companies who wanted to pirate me. The sun's glare began to penetrate through the glass. Kulimlim hated morning as much as I did, but if you think about it, if there was no sun—crops won't grow, my clothes won't dry, reptiles would die; heck, there wouldn't be any living thing on earth at all. I hate that habit of mine. I tend to over-analyze things. You see, most people are only interested in the _what,_ the _where_ and the _when._ I on the other hand tend to dwell further on the two more important questions: the _why_ and the _how._ The details, the mechanics, the history, the _purpose_ —I crave for this shit. To quote the Wachowski brothers, "People don't care how it works, as long as it works." I hate it . . . _really_ , but I love it all the same.

Walking along the main street of _Libertad, Mandaluyong_ , I raised my arm and hailed for a cab. Twenty minutes later—still stranded on the same place—I started to get frustrated. The cab I hailed was taken by a guy who showed up much later than me. I wished I could punch him in the face. Basically, you can look at it with half-finished roads, street signs with unknown names, cheap _carenderias_ and towering condos like any other street alongside EDSA. But in the end, it's a jungle where late employees fought over cabs and rushing pedestrians sprinted over roads, while _MRT_ -goers scurried amongst each other like a stock of sheep where wolves crawled, waiting patiently to strike. "Survival of the Fittest _,_ " the only way to live way before Darwin coined those words. I finally caught one, a PZA-MGE09, the latest in the line of panzer public vehicles. _Dollar, too_ , I said to myself, but I didn't really have any choice. The door opened and I sat inside.

"Where to, sir?" the driver asked.

The man was probably in his 50's, wearing cool aviator glasses with a shade of velvet. I envied him. I once wore aviator glasses as my trademark during college. Since I was in a band, people would call me "Ely." But when I started working, my eyesight finally caught up and I became more practical. With transition lenses, you won't really need ultra cool shades, just ultraviolet protection.

"Eastwood, Libis." I said as the door automatically closed.

It felt weird sitting inside a car that didn't have wheels, but I guess it always did. Soon we were off, rising towards the floating EDSA VII Toll Way about thirty storeys from the ground. I always thought that when flying cars would be invented, traffic would be eliminated. It _would_ _be_ if only one person had the flying car. But like I said, panzers are everywhere, including cabs with overpriced flags.

"1000 pesos _?_ " I said. "Jeez... It was just _750_ last week." The time bomb began to count. Fortunately, Tantuco paid well as a panzer company, covering the expense, although the price hikes were indeed unjustifiable. As they stated, The Source is _infinite_ , for God's sake.

"Yeah, Tantuco had another price hike. Don't you watch the news?"

"Not really. What are they thinking?"

"Don't know, sir. Don't even know why the price goes up in the first place. I mean...The Miracle or whatever they call it. It would never run out, right?"

He turned on the radio. _Magazine_ was playing. Ignoring his question, I started to hum to the song. We used to play this in the band, and even way back in high school. The _Eraserheads_ had it going in the 90's. They should have ended it there. Now all they have is crap. As I sang through the chorus, I looked through the window. Flying cars—more commonly known as "pods"—travelled in an invisible line like busy ants marching on with their busy lives. Giant floating billboards and holograms here and there; from shampoos to condos, the beautiful Anne Curtis was everywhere. Down on the street, MRT, buses, jeeps, and even tricycles ruled. Not everyone could afford the high-end prices of panzer vehicles. Diesel is still being used by the common man. Why? Because diesel came from the Middle East, not China; and even if it goes up, its still way cheaper compared to The Source. Down on _Galleria_ , I saw a cluster, like a large chunk of insects feeding over a leftover.

"Protesters," the driver said. "They're fighting for our rights to The Miracle. My brother's actually one of them."

A large banner stated _"FREE ENERGY FOR ALL!"_ You can see these guys every day. Some say that most of them are members of the Kalayaan terrorist group.

"Your brother?" I said with a little tone of interest. "Isn't that dangerous?"

"Well, EDSA is basically a jungle," he said. "It's dangerous everywhere. I would join him if I can, but I got to work for my kids, you know, all twelve of them."

"Wow," was all I could say. I don't get it with the poor. They know they don't have enough money to survive, let alone for themselves, but they keep on having children. _Mindless monkeys,_ I said to myself. Horny as hell or just bored? Or maybe they took God's last order too seriously: _Go forth and multiply._ If you put it that way, they're very obedient Catholics, eh?

"Yeah, my eldest is getting married next month, got to save up."

I don't know if this was his way of getting a tip, but it wouldn't work on me. I don't care if he had a dozen children or more; it's his sperm—his problem.

We were now landing by Global VII, one of Tantuco Solutions many buildings in Eastwood. The fare was 3500 pesos. I lost track of the regular fare with all the hikes in the last few weeks.

"Here you go."

Having no smaller bills, I handed him 4K.

The door opened; I was waiting for him to give me the change, but old Ely was just staring at me, as if he was telepathically saying, _I'm not giving you the change, you idiot. Get off now._

"Thanks, man. This will really help."

I went out, staring at the name of the boss of all bosses, ready for another day of slavery:

TANTUCO SOLUTIONS

Creating a Better World

What a crap. I turned to face the parking lot. I wondered if Steve went home at all. His purple VW 1303 was still parked the same way he left it—slightly 90 degrees off the lane. Old school, classic, just the way I like it. You see, not everyone embraced the new toys that the aliens brought us. That's the irony about Steve—he builds panzers but he rides a beetle. I guess you can say the same thing about me, someone who programs panzers but still uses a Samsung E1080F. I remember this one time at my cousin's place. He was only about four. He told me, "That's my _nanny'_ s phone." I burst with laughter. Hey, at least it has a flashlight. With the crime rate and all, you can't really bring a 100K phone around, even in a cab. Really expensive, you ask? Well, that's the cheapest you can get with a panzer phone even at _Greenhills._

"Good morning, Ayel!" Yvonne greeted as she did every day of the week.

"Not really feeling it," I said as I dropped my bag.

"Cab driver robbed you again?" she said annoyingly.

"Yeah. Should have brought smaller bills."

She mumbled more stuff which I started to ignore. Yvonne was a good girl, a good employee. By good employee I mean she goes to work early and goes home late. She won most of the _employee-of-the-month_ awards. She can practically run for _employee-of-the-year_ and win by default. A typical teacher's pet. But for me she's a good person. Just don't tell her anything you would want the whole project to know. You see, I have names for the different archetypes that my colleagues fall under. I call Yvonne "The Wall _,_ " not because she's big or anything, but because once you tell her something, the whole community knows. A few minutes later and Robin and Ryan arrived, more commonly known as "The Breakers _._ " _Yosi_ break _,_ coffee break, logical break _._ You name it. As for Elaine, I call her "The Dictionary." She likes to give meaning to a lot of things, even if there is no reason at all. I also call her "The Snooper." She would ask every newbie for their Facebook accounts, and by the next day, she would appear as if she had been their friend for years.

I proceeded to open my desktop and began checking my email. I remembered Steve's message and decided to open it. I was relieved. It was just a picture of us: Ric, Steve and me plus some other guys from the hangar during our last drinking session. The eyeshine from the camera flash ruined the photo. Looking closer, I noticed something was written below Ric.

"Dependant," it said. I decided to pop him.

"Hey Steve!"

MESSAGE NOT SENT. THIS PERSON IS OFFLINE.

I popped Ric instead but I got the same reply. _That's weird. Both of them are always early, always in; they barely had any VLs or SLs either. I guess I'll just try later,_ I said to myself. I checked my tasks for the day. Most were admin and review stuff; one got hold of my attention— Change Request (CR) 2397: Update PZ-CMP logic to auto-pilot transfer of cargo. This was it. This was the reason why guys at the hangar hated us programmers. The more we got better at our job, the more of them lose theirs.

_Automation_ —the very mention of this word would cause panic among the pilots, the mechanics, and the maintenance people. The machines were simply better at doing their job; they were not prone to human error, no daily complaints, no demands for a raise or a gym, and no one-hour coffee breaks. The company saw it was more profitable to invest on the development guys instead of the manual team. Good news for me, bad news for Ric and Steve. I began to work. Conditional statement here, a function there, another parameter; it's actually fun and torture at the same time. The thing about panzer technology is it pretty much works like any other programming language out there—you just have to know the basics and learn the syntax.

There are two things I envy about the manual guys though: One is their license, the other is their toys. We'll get to the second later on. We computer science guys have no title, and even if we take certification exams, it's not really something you can boast to your non-IT friends or your mother's _amigas_. Compared to Engr. Eric Pueblo and Engr. Steven Laurel, I'm just Ayel del Rio. And if I tell anyone I work at Tantuco, I just get one generic response: "So you work at a call center, eh?" Damn annoying, but I get tired of explaining and wasting my time so most of the time I just say _yes._

Lunch came. Ric was still offline. Maybe he _was_ sick or something. I went to the cafeteria. I ordered the usual Combo 2: pork asado and noodles with chili sauce. What I like about a Chinese company is that they always have a Chinese menu. I found a table just beside the window. I sat facing a hologram. It was a PZH-LED-12 model, probably a prototype. The cafeteria was kind of big, round and fancy, with touches of red, brown and metal. The usual bamboo designs here and there. The head of _Pacquiáo_ sat proud in the middle, the hologram projector making his face blue.

"Why did you run as President and not as Vice President first?" the interviewer said.

"If I win President, I can help more people," the champion-turned-to-pastor replied.

_Help? Perhaps steal more,_ I said to myself.

"How did you prepare for this election? Did you study the Constitution?"

"Yes I studied it. It was very easy. What's important is that you help people."

"What can you say about people saying your Bible study is a gimmick?"

"No gimmick. The Bible is a manual. When you buy appliance, the Bible is your manual. So when you buy appliance, you need to read the Bible so you know how to live our lives."

I couldn't control it. I just had to let it out. I laughed hard, but I wasn't alone. Everyone in the room was hissing, passing messages as they giggled.

"Okay, sir. How about the Prime Minister of Mindanao? Do you have any messages for him?"

"Let's make love, not war!"

I laughed some more; the janitors always went out to watch his speeches. But no matter how hard we laughed, we all knew he'd win. I mean, Pacquiao? Manny "Pac-Man" Pacquiáo? We all knew that big budget commercials and easy to ride jingles didn't work. The people always voted for someone famous—an actor, a celebrity. I mean, last time, a certain disgraced former President, *cough* Erap *cough*, almost won again, as if the people were brainwashed to forget his 80 MILLION _DOLLARS_ worth of embezzlement. That's DOLLARS! DOLLAAAARS!!!

Jeez... Impeachment anyone? Have they forgotten it that easily? Or are they just mindlessly unaware, ignorant of what's going on as long as the promised goods are delivered? And now we have someone _more_ famous—a world-wide boxing champion. Sigh... It's just more fun in the Philippines, isn't it?

I went on with my business. Suddenly, time stopped. I couldn't move. Well, I guess it didn't, but you can imagine it that way. As I was about to swallow my last fork of tangled goodness, I saw a girl staring directly at me, about three o'clock to the table beside me. I noticed she was the only one who wasn't laughing her heart out. I stared back, the fork still suspended in mid air. For about five seconds, she let go. I always love doing that; it was one of my favorite little games. When someone stared, I always stared back to see who would look away first. I had my fair share of losses, but this time, victory was mine. After a while, time moved again. I swallowed my last piece, drank my iced tea and went to the restroom.

_Who was that girl?_ _I haven't seen her before, and she had this attire, the one that fresh grads usually wear._

I can't explain it in detail since I have no sense in female fashion, but I knew what a newbie looked like. That innocent face, eyes that don't know where to go, standing anywhere while holding their NDA forms. They spread newbie scent so easily that made them perfect prey for bullies and playboys. But one thing newbies generally had in common was they always travelled in herds, flocks, packs. This one was a loner, an exile. Perhaps she was a predator and not a prey; an omega, a lone wolf, or the Grey itself. I washed my face and pulled the bathroom kit from my pocket. I opened my toothpaste—glistering red, my favorite.

Back in my cube, the giant approached me.

"Hey Ayel!" Yvonne greeted; her girth was enough to block the sunlight. "I'd like you to meet our new junior."

"Oh? We got another one?" I said with a raised eyebrow. With all the higher-ups getting rolled-off, it wasn't a surprise that juniors came in every other week.

"This is Janet. She's fresh from training camp."

The pen in my hand dropped. It was her. I didn't really see it first, but she's actually cute upfront.

"Hello! Nice to meet you!" she said cheerfully as she reached out her hand to me. I just stared at her open palm, and then my eyes rolled up to her face. I never really shook hands with pretty girls on the first time, or the second, or ever.

"Oh! Nice to meet you too."

For about five seconds again, there was silence. _What is it with this girl?_ I thought. _Does she have the power to bend the time-space continuum?_

"Alright, c'mon Janet, I'll introduce you to the rest of the project."

They left; it was weird. She didn't look like anything like the Grey I saw before. The cold territorial look of a wolf was replaced by cute round puppy-eyes of a mutt in a pet shop, waiting anxiously for someone to adopt her.

_Janet,_ eh?

## PHASE 3

## OVERTIME

Night came and I prepared to leave. I looked around. _Looks like she left already,_ I thought, a little disappointed. On the elevator area, I found all the lifts either full or out of service. I decided to take another route—the service elevator. Using the service elevator wasn't really conventional for us developers, but it wasn't prohibited either, at least from my point of view. I remember how Ric and I would ride it, visiting secured areas. One time when we went to the 14th, the guard asked us, "What is your purpose?"

We weren't really expecting a guard so we came up with the lamest but most plausible excuse. "We're looking for some juice?"

It was really funny because the guard ended up giving us the floor where the juice actually was. Soon the memory reminded me of another: how were Ric and Steve doing? I searched for B2 and pressed it. I didn't really talk much, and these two were the closest thing I had to what do you call it again? Oh yeah... _friends._ The shaft began to move; I was on the 66th but the door opened just about five seconds after it closed. What would you expect from a company that provided the number one source of panzer solution in the country?

I stepped out; it was dark and silent.

_Early shifts? No—wait. The hangar never closed. It ran 24 hours round the clock._ _Even if they went home, there should still be some people here._

I flipped the lights, no response. Soon I found a dim light, a faint glare, kind of sparkling blue a few docks beyond the PZX-Carriers. I pulled my phone and switched its most useful feature—the _flashlight_. I moved along. The hangar was probably thrice as wide as a ground floor of a large mall. PZX-Compactors, carriers, excavators, cranes, drills and all sorts of machinery you can imagine; truly an engineer's dream come true. Parked in each dock along the wall was a PZX-R model—large bulky robots complete with a head, body, hands and legs—each standing about 14 feet tall. The PZX-R line, or the _construction lines_ as most people call them, was typically covered in shades of amber. Remember the other thing I envied about the manual operators? This was it. There were all kinds of models, each one suited for a specific task. The PZX-R01 was a basic carrier. The PZX-R05 was a driller. Then there was my favorite, the PZX-R11, a robot with a laser. I once saw Steve pilot his model as he cut through scrap metal with pure energy. Pretty cool, eh? They say the original panzers found in the spacecraft were actually very much like these awesome giants—with _humanoid_ forms. Everything else is just a derivation.

But why do they put the label "Made in China" if the panzers are being built _here_? C'mon, the answer is pretty obvious, right? That's because nobody will buy something that has a label "Made in the Philippines." Everyone will think its _pirated_ or a rip-off. *Sigh* I guess the Filipinos are not familiar with the saying "Love your own."

Reaching the end of the wall, I found myself on the last dock on the corner: dock B2G9—Steve's hideout. His panzer's chest cockpit was open, but he was nowhere to be found. The sound of large exhaust fans came out of another _Area_. I forgot how actually big the hangar was; there was _more_ than one Area. I was currently in Area 1. The dim light continued to pulse; it came from the large metal gate with the sign:

AREA 2

ACCESS PROHIBITED. DO NOT ENTER.

The gate was about 20 feet high and 80 meters wide. It was thick enough to crush anyone who would get stuck between it while the doors were closing. I continued. The light came from a small opening large enough for a person to squeeze into, and so I did. After managing to pull myself, I stood in a room, staring at the giants that towered before me. I was surrounded by a green army, a panzer army.

PZX-RM it said on the wall— _military_ lines.

At the back I saw cannon loaders and salvo carriers; on the corners, there were stinger riders and what looked like a beam cutter. On the frontlines were the basic infantry carrying my favorite weapon—the PZEX-SKS-BAYONET TYPE-0, more commonly known as the "Pilot Killer." It was basically the beefed-up _panzer_ version of the typical Soviet arsenal, but was about 6 feet long, 10 if the blade was unfolded. The blade itself was made from the carbonized iron that was found with The Source which they were able to imitate. This baby could easily pierce through the chest piece armor, instantly killing the pilot, hence the name. _Pretty cool_ _stuff_.

I looked around as I began to ponder. I thought the _Government Arsenal_ was the one in _-_ charge with the production of basic weaponry and ammunition for the AFP and PNP. I remembered how Congressman Garcia added a Phase V to his House Bill 0076, also known as the _Government Arsenal Modernization Act._

It stated:

The Arsenal shall acquire necessary funding to develop its capabilities in the field of panzer technology, specifically weaponry and ammunition, as an on-going effort to transform the arms ammunition manufacturer into a multi-task-capable agency and to ensure National Security and global competence.

Competence my ass. Looks like all our _funding_ goes to Tantuco as well. There were several protesters and a few senators that opposed the new phase, but it couldn't be helped; the country needed weapons for self-defense and national security, especially after Trillianes' little _escapade_ at The Manila Peninsula. Instead of tanks, imagine giant robots, storming in towards the hotel entrance. I don't really know how he got hold of the prototypes before the war started, but I guess it was through the black market. Then there was the Glorietta and LRT bombings, even buses. But at least we don't have to worry about the MILF or any suicidal Muslims for the matter, thanks to the Quezon-Davao Treaty of 2008, more commonly known as the Mindanao Separation Signing. Starting then, the Philippines was divided into two: North and South. I guess you can figure out which part South is. They adopted a parliamentary system while Luzon and Vizayas stayed with the democratic. If you think about it, the less Muslim terrorists, the better it is right? Some agreed, some still don't, others don't care at all.

"Damn! This is way too cool," I said, not caring if there was anyone who would hear me. I just thought Tantuco was an IT company with a few industrialization and consulting services, or I guess they just started out as one. Now they can practically _run_ a country. With this entire spectacle around me, I forgot the blue light that caught my attention in the first place. It continued to flicker, now a lot brighter inside the gate. I turned off my handy dandy flashlight. The light source was from a small corner, emanating from a strange container—sort of a tube, a shell, a vessel of some kind, with all kinds of wires going here and there. There was a small viewing glass, just enough for someone to take a peek at what was inside. I came closer, just an arm's length away. Barely readable with all the dust and rust, I saw the sign above the container:

MWE 045

"What the hell is this? A new model?"

I was excited now. As my head came closer, I heard a bump, a bump that became louder as it repeated itself. Then I realized it wasn't someone, it was _something_. It was the gate of Area 2—it was opening. I hid behind the container as I looked around to find an escape route. If anyone had caught me there, my fate would have been worse than death—I would have been _fired_. You see, anyone who was fired from Tantuco was damned for life; the poor soul's name would be listed as part of the _blacklist_ —a list so powerful that no other company would dare hire you ever again. The things I found out were way above my paycheck. I _had_ to get out. The gate was halfway open now. I heard people murmuring from the elevator. I had no time to check who it was. I had to get out. Did I say that twice already? I started to panic. Then suddenly, something crawled over my shoes; it was big, it was black. It was a _rat_. As Ric always said, if there's a rat, there's a way. You just have to find out if you can fit in it. I searched in all directions; I couldn't find it. Two voices later emerged. They got clearer by the second. I was now sure it wasn't Steve or Ric.

"I told you not to leave the gate open," a grumpy, husky voice said.

"Sorry, sir, but it doesn't really fully close. Something must be wrong with it..." said the younger one.

"—or jamming it," the senior interrupted. "Check the Area now."

"Shit! They're coming!" I said to myself. As I crept back silently, I tripped from a plug and landed on my butt.

"Did you hear that?" grumpy said.

_Shit! Shit! Shit!_ I cursed and I cursed to myself. The young one was getting nearer now; his footsteps echoed through the cold metal floor for each step he took. Only a cargo box stood between me and him. I was blank. I didn't know what to do anymore; pressure was never really on my side. I closed my eyes and surrendered to fate.

"Sir! You better take a look at this," junior said anxiously. "You won't like it."

_I guess I can always try self-business online_ , I joked to myself.

"What? Let me see."

Grumpy's footsteps grew much louder, as if he was slamming his foot, purposely making the sound. All of a sudden, it stopped. "What!!? How could—Who could have!?"

"What do you think happened, sir?"

"I don't know, lad, but there's a reason why they don't have camera's in here. They do all the dirty stuff down here."

For a moment, that sentence reassured me; but did it make sense? If it was a strictly prohibited sector, should it have more cameras? At any rate, I then realized they weren't referring to me at all. I opened my eyes and peeked through the small opening between the crates. They were looking inside the container. _What was inside it?_ My curiosity overcame my fear; it was pushing me to jump and join them, but good thing I was still sane. Separates us from the cats, eh?

"What do we do now, sir?"

"Nothing. We just pretend like we don't know."

"But, sir?" protested the young one.

"No buts, kid," grumpy said, his voice much louder now. "We didn't see anything, we didn't hear anything. That's how it has been and that's how it will stay."

Junior was silent now.

"C'mon, kid. It's 11PM. I still have a boxing match to watch."

Re-runs. Grumpy was the same as my grandfather—always watched boxing whoever the fighter was. After a while, grumpy left the room. Junior was still looking at the container. If he was curious, imagine how I was at that exact moment. I was _dying_ to know. And then he left too. Their footsteps became weaker and weaker. I heard the ping of the elevator, and after a few seconds, all was back to its silent glory.

This was it.

I jumped to the container and flooded the glass with my face. It was all blue, with as much tubes inside it as there were outside—it was _empty_.

_What the hell? Something was missing and they didn't even report it? I thought it was just damaged or something._ I thought to myself various reasons and various answers. But the very one I couldn't answer _—what was inside?_

After a few minutes, I decided to go back. Boxing matches usually take more than an hour with all the commercials. This was my chance. I ran out of Area 2, past the gate, past Steve's dock, past the line of PZX-Rs, and finally to the service elevator. I decided to go up 66th again and go down from the normal elevators. The plan was good, nobody was there anymore. My floor was never secured anyway. I dropped down to the lobby. For a moment, I was speechless—it was junior, standing in the middle of the elevator door as it opened.

"Good evening, sir!" he said with a grin. "Overtime?"

"Uh... Yeah!" I said like I knew what I was saying. "Got some issues needed fixing."

"What floor are you from, sir?"

My heart skipped a beat. _What if he actually saw me? What if there were actual cameras hidden? What if he made rounds in my floor?_

"Uh... No need to worry, our floor's not a secured bay." I replied, hoping my answer was enough.

"The floor, sir?" he insisted.

"66th" I answered. I had to tell him the truth or it would lead to more suspicion.

"Oh! The 66th! Okay, sir. Sorry for delaying you. Just doing my job. You see we've been getting reports of missing items lately."

"Really? A keyboard? A mouse? I guess a monitor can even fit in large bag, eh? "

"Yes. Something like that."

"Well, you do your job well. If you catch 'em, you might get a raise," I said as I inspired him.

"Yes, sir! And do report anyone you see suspicious."

"Yeah, I will." I said as I walked away.

_What a day it turned out to be!_ I thought. I just couldn't wait to tell Ric. As I went down the parking lot, with all the stories I had to tell, my feet triggered a trap; my mind had gone mad.

Steve's beetle was still there, parked the same way as the night before and the night before that—slightly 90 degrees off the lane.

If he isn't in the hangar, where is he?

## PHASE 4

## REVERSE ENGINEERING

Okay, it's time for some History 101. The heated discussions between these tiny little islands began long before Vietnam's _white paper_ of 1979, long before Tomas Cloma named it the "Kalayaan" in 1951, and even before the French's "De Lanessan" expedition on 1927. It was the 1900's. Vietnam's Nguyễn Dynasty insisted that the Bac Hai Company had authority over the islands since the 18th century. Can you imagine that? It was frustrating to study history because each country had its own basis for their sovereignty over the islands. Vietnam had this, the French had that. Then the superpowers joined in including China and Japan. Taiwan and Malaysia joined in later, and of course, our ever competitive country would never fall behind with the _trending_ issue.

We had a good fight, really, until The Source came anyway. The year was 1986. A Vietnamese fisherman named Lam Cao Dung was returning home after catching his day's worth when a meteorite suddenly appeared out of nowhere, crashing on the islands not far from where his boat was. The newspaper stated that he made contact with the spacecraft itself. In a translated interview, he said:

" _The UFO was inside the rock. The light was blue, I followed it inside. When I touched the floating orb, it began to beat, like a heart! But there was nobody inside!_ "

What everybody feared suddenly became a worldwide phenomenon. Vietnam of course, claimed ownership of the spacecraft, and Lam Cao Dung enjoyed his moment of fame as the Magellan of the Spratly UFO. It made him into a celebrity. In _Oprah_ , he was asked what he would like to name the UFO. The translator said, "It gave me fame and fortune. I will call it 'The Miracle!'"

More shows and interviews followed until China intervened. As Vietnamese transport ships decided to collect the UFO parts and transfer it to their homeland, Chinese warships suddenly appeared and a minor clash between the two forces took place over Johnson Reef. China forces prevailed and they won control not only over the Spratly reefs, but over the spacecraft as well.

During President Fidel V. Ramos' term in 1995, the Philippine government revealed news of Chinese military structures being built around the area of the spacecraft, more commonly known as the Mischief Reefs. The reason—which the other countries confirmed—was they built a fortress around the spacecraft because it appears they couldn't move it completely. Unbeknownst to everyone, Chinese scientists and engineers had already found a way to decipher the orb, and along with it, unlocked the large machines that lay dormant in the containers.

In 1997, they announced that they have discovered how to extract electricity from the orb and where offering an alternate supply to the conventional energy sources of electricity and petroleum. The same year, the German-American aerospace engineer and member of the "von Braun rocket group," Walter Hausserman, took China's offer and began working on the machines they found. In 2003, the very first prototype emerged. It was a large bipedal tank with the shape of a human standing about 14 feet tall. Hausserman called it—the New _Panzer,_ referring to it as a new upgrade of the well known German tank models. This term basically means "armor" in his native land.

The other nations became jealous. Tension rose between the Philippines and China. The "Philippine Baselines Law of 2009" (RA 9522) was enacted by the Office of the Philippine President, which declared the new law that the _Kalayaan Island Group_ and the _Scarborough Shoal_ belonged to the Philippines. China merely laughed at this. The US also had their share of cyberspace wars with China. The result? China nearly wiped out the American company "Google Inc." from their country.

In 2012, the prophesized end of the world occurred, or at least it _ended_ for a while. Out in the Yellow Sea, the US Navy exchanged fire with a Chinese fleet. War broke. The US was aided by Japan while North Korea took China's side. On the other side of the world, Iran bombed Israel. The latter retaliated on Syria and Lebanon. Panzers were being sold in the black market like your typical AK-47s. They were everywhere. But panzers operated only on one power source, the orb, so China had control over those countries.

The Philippines watched the world in horror and simply treated the injured that entered their territory without taking any sides. Eventually, China and its allies crushed the US and Japan. The war, which lasted only twelve months, would later go down history as World War III, the Chino-American War, or more commonly in pop-culture, the Panzer War. China emerged as the new dominant superpower, with the US and Japan left to recover from the nightmare. Soon the world was back to normal. But with no more war, the giant panzers were either displayed in museums, or left to rust in military bases.

It was the end of an era. But like all technological advancements that started with the military—like the internet for example—panzer technology soon found its way into an era of peace.

The _Tantuco_ group, a powerful and leading Chinese international company which started with IT and manufacturing services soon invested on using panzer technology to develop what you would see every day. No longer does the term refer only to German tanks or bipedal behemoths, but to the umbrella technology encompassing anti-gravity cars, floating billboards, holographic smart phones, holographic LEDs, 3D desktop controls, virtual reality games, construction robots and a whole lot more. Tantuco had _literally_ redefined how the world uses the word "panzer." The Philippines of course, had to adapt. I remember one of my favorite Darwin quotes:

"It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change."

Soon the company became Tantuco _Solutions_.

I laugh at the Filipinos' frequent mistake of calling the orb as The Miracle _,_ even though Lam Cao Dung was referring to the UFO as a whole. It's the same feeling when I laugh at those who pronounce the "t" in tsunami. Anyway, Tantuco Solutions simply coined it "The Source," and the rest as we say, is history.

—Cloak and Dagger

##

##

##

## PHASE 5

## UNCASUAL FRIDAY

It was midnight. I was left blank at the spot, trying my best to deny my suspicions. I was desperate, I was lost. _Where the hell is Steve?_ _It can't be. It just can't._ _Should I tell the police? No I can't. I don't have enough proof. Or maybe they already know?_

With Tantuco and all, the police may already have their pockets filled with their share _._

_Think. Think. Was Ric telling the truth the whole time? If so, where the hell is he?_ I had to talk to him first. I searched for my phone, browsed contacts, and called his number.

"Sorry, you do not have enough credit on your account to make this call. Please reload immediately to enjoy—"

"Shit! No load. No load." I kept saying to myself. I looked around to search for a store. With all that shit going on, I forgot to notice the people around me. Why were there so many people outside at this late hour? The dazzling neon lights, the heart-pounding loud basses, the fusion of acoustic guitars and beat boxes, mixed with voices high and low: some were talking, some were singing; incessant laughter everywhere. Suddenly it hit me—it was _Friday_. I easily forget ever since my company removed casual Friday. After a while, I managed to move. I dragged my feet out of the trap and got hold of my mind. I was never really the party-goer. Some of these kids were probably just fifteen or eighteen. There was this one bar, _Manor_. It was kind of... _special_.

People lined up to it as if they were going to the _Oscars_ or something. Not the long gown type but more of the formal, wealthy, fund raiser class of attire; pretty young ladies lined up on the benches outside, black limousines dropping more of them as the minutes passed by. I looked at each one: long curly hair, teasing neck and shoulders, flawless legs, complexion and face of a goddess that would melt you if it begged, complete with touches of _Hermes_ , _Louis Vuitton, Dior, Chanel, D &G_. You name it.

After a few minutes of eye candy, I went back to my problem, and then another arose. With all the molecules of steak, burgers, barbeques, pizza, tacos, sisig and some other stuff floating up my nose, my body gave in. It was my stomach, it was growling. I forgot I didn't have dinner yet. Maybe the call can wait; maybe I'm just overreacting. Either way, I just needed something to appease my hungry parasites. I found this restobar with a few tables outside. "Somethin' Fishy," it said on the wall. The trees provided cool breeze, the cars passing barely noticeable. There were just a few people drinking, probably batch mates. _Brings back memories,_ I thought. I sat by the empty table beside the group. They were making a ruckus, but at least the singing and bass throbs weren't as loud here. I raised my hand. The waitress at the door didn't notice me. Another came out to take the order of another group on the far right. I was outnumbered.

"You won't get any order with that voice," someone said from the other table. "You gotta shout, man!"

I didn't look. I was a bit pissed. I didn't know what got in my head that time, but I remembered a friend of mine using a lighter to call a waitress, and then the idea hit me. Since I wasn't a smoker, I turned on my trusty cell phone flashlight and waived it like crazy at the lady on the door. She was blinded, but at least that got her attention. She came in hot and fast.

"Yes, sir?" she said, looking kind of annoyed, but trying to hide it as well.

"Yes, I would like to have what he's having." I said as I pointed to the guy on the other side with the sizzling plate.

"Drinks, sir?"

"Nothing. Just water." I replied and she moved along. As she turned her back, I noticed how revealing their dress was. _Nice,_ I thought to myself.

"Those were nice moves, Ayel." The voice from the other table spoke again.

"Yeah. Really nice a—What the?" I turned around and looked. It was her, her again.

"It's Ayel, right?" she said, loud enough to hear. "Don't tell me you just got out?"

"Yeah. Overtime. Got some issues to fix." I said, repeating the same excuse I said to junior.

"Well, why won't you come join us?" she said as she pushed the guy on her right to make space. I pulled my chair and joined the group. There were only five of them, Janet was the only girl.

"Hey guys!" she said, grabbing their attention. "This is Ayel, my officemate."

"Hey!" I said.

"This is Karl, Kiel, Russ and Tims" she said, pointing to each one of them.

A little _hey_ , a little _whoo,_ a little hand shake and hand waive over there. They were obviously drunk. Their faces red, their bottles empty—all four buckets accounted for.

"For Ayel!" they said altogether as they raised their bottles up high. "Kampai!"

"Don't mind them," she said softly, patting me on the shoulder. "These are my batchmates."

"No, it's alright. I actually remember _my_ batchmates." I said. "One time, when we passed the boot camp exams, I went home so drunk that I don't really remember how I got home."

"Really? How _did_ you get home?"

"It was all a blur. I slept through the bus ride and ended up in a place farther than I was supposed to drop off."

She laughed. "Good thing you woke up!"

"It was the conductor that woke me up. I was the only passenger left."

"Nice!" she laughed again, her whole attention shifting to me.

"And the climax of that trip—I had to climb the fence of the house."

"Wait—What? You climbed like a thief?" She said as she narrowed her eyes. "Why?"

"I _had_ to! Just like your friendly neighborhood _magnanakaw_. The landlady changed keys and forgot to give me the new one."

She laughed some more. "You really don't look like you can hurt a fly, Ayel. You look so innocent."

"You see, that's my secret," I replied as I winked at her.

"Whatever..." she said as her eyes rolled around. "Look, it's your sisig."

"Finally! I'm starving."

The sizzling spectacle of minced pork, fat, onion, egg and more fat passed by my shoulders, the smell: _intoxicating_. I offered her some.

"C'mon, eat up."

"No thanks. I'm full already," she said.

"Suit yourself."

Time passed. My plate was clean. Her friends, looking drunk and dragged, left one by one a few minutes earlier. Janet on the other hand, was busy with her PZC—GALAXY.

"Your friends sure got drunk," I said, looking over her phone.

"Friends? Like I said, they're just batchmates who called me up. I just didn't want to sound rude," she said, her eyes still focused on her phone. "They told me the other girls would be coming, but when I came, it was just me."

"Really? Maybe they left early."

"No dude. They were trying to get me drunk. Isn't it that obvious?" Her eyes shot through me like a lance.

"Maybe. But you held good. I noticed your bottle of water there," I said as I pointed at her hidden container below the table.

"Oh, you did? This is my secret weapon you know." She said smiling as she shook the half-empty bottle above her head.

"Every time you went to the CR, I saw the bottle got refilled to."

"Your power of observation amuses me, Dr. Holmes," she said, with a perfect British accent.

"Yes, Dr. Watson. It does rather have that effect on people," I replied to the best I could, but I was never cut out for a British accent.

She laughed hard. "That's horrible! It's like Sherlock Holmes from India."

"Hello? Hello? This is Dr. Suresh. Welcome to the Tantuco Adventure!" I said as I fed her more Indian accents.

"Did you work at a call center?" Her eyebrow rose. "You could really pass for an Indian, you know."

"To hell with call centers and workaholic Indians! They increased the working hours to nine, and then eleven. I just hate 'em."

"Don't be a racist. The world is a jungle. They got to do _something_ to survive. And so do we."

I couldn't believe it. Someone younger than me was lecturing about survival. _Maybe she's not as naive as I thought she was._

"Yeah... As Darwin used to say..."

"— _Survival of the fittest,_ right?" she interrupted me.

"Oh, so you're a psychic now, eh? " I said sarcastically.

"Excuse me... The proper term is _telepath_ ," she replied, correcting me as she amused herself. This was it. Darwin? Holmes? Telepath? I had never met a girl this nerdy before, but the thing is, she didn't even look the part. I began to laugh to myself.

"What's so funny?" She raised a brow again, placing her phone on the table. Then suddenly, I remembered something.

"Oh, Janet... I totally forgot. I have to load my phone. I have someone I need to call."

"Here, use mine," she said softly, handing over hers.

"Really?" I asked, a little timid myself. "Is it okay?"

"Yeah! Go ahead. It's a line anyway."

"Oh, okay. Thanks."

I took her phone and pulled mine out of my pocket.

"Dude, seriously?" she said, pointing at my trusty weapon. "What the hell is that?"

"This happens to be all I need, you know, and it even has a flashlight."

"Yeah. I get the flashlight part."

By this time, I got pretty used to all the insults they could shove at my phone.

"Pretty cool, eh? "

"Yeah, but why don't you buy a smart phone? Or at least a touch screen? With your salary, you can pretty much afford it."

"Well... All smart phones are technically panzer phones—too expensive. At any rate, I'm just a simple person with simple needs. I just need a phone which can text and call. That's all."

"You sound like an old guy."

"Do I? For me, it's really not practical to carry around something _that_ expensive when you're commuting on a day to day basis, especially with the crime rate these days."

"I guess you're right, but you're weird."

"Whatever."

I opened contacts, typed Ric's number, and dialed. The answer was fast.

"Hello?" a girl answered. "Who is this?"

I checked my phone. _Maybe I got it wrong._

"Uh, is this Ric's number?"

"Oh, Ric? Wait a second."

I heard some music, _loud_ music. It was like they were also in a bar somewhere.

"Yo, yo! This is Engineer Eric Pueblos speaking! How may I help you?" He was drunk, his ego bursting through my ears. But at least I knew he was okay.

"Hey Ric, It's me, Ayel. Where are you?"

"I'm in Bora, man, the land of the free and the laid!"

"What? Wait—when did you get there?"

"I was about to tell you last time we were chatting, man, but you left already."

Suddenly, it did ring a bell.

Janet saw a few friends. She signaled me that she would go talk to them for a while.

"Shit! Sorry, man. But how about Steve? His beetle has been sitting in the parking lot for two days now."

Ric didn't speak. I heard the background settling down. He was moving somewhere quiet.

"I told you, man. Didn't you get the email?" he said as if he was whispering. "Steve had a heart attack, man." He paused, then he said, "he didn't make it."

For a few seconds, angels flew by. Then, finally, it slowly sank in me. It was _true_. Steve _was_ gone.

"I haven't seen the email. But why are they still hiding it? Doesn't his family need to know? And a heart attack? Wasn't he too young for that?" I asked, trying to make sense of it all.

"I know, man. But you know Steve, the workaholic he is. He practically _lived_ in the hangar, working on double to triple shifts, barely going home just to sleep for a few hours."

I scratched my head. "So you're saying it's overwork? He _died_ of _overwork?_ "

"I'm not sure, man. That's what some people are saying. Happens all the time in Japan and other countries. Look it up. It's called _Karoshi—_ death by overwork."

"Yeah, I've heard of the term. Just wasn't expecting it to happen to someone I know." I sighed. "Well, I guess it does make sense if you put it that way. But shit though, what a fuck up way to die."

"I know... And I would have come to grieve you know, if there was any grieving at all. And they say Steve's parents are already gone. As for relatives, I'm not sure."

"But how could you be there with Steve dead, man!?"

I was angry. Hearing my upset tone, Janet looked over. I settled down a little.

"Sorry, man. Lissa and I have been planning this trip for months and she already bought a ticket. I just couldn't upset her more, and there's really nothing I could do then just pray for him."

I sighed again. "I guess I can understand that. But when are they going to reveal it to the public? And why was the hangar closed?"

"They closed for a day for Steve. As for when they'll make it public, probably on Monday. They just don't want the media making up stuff you know. "

"Yeah, with all the protesters lately, they'll surely get a riot."

I calmed down a bit.

"Yeah... Cheers for Steve, man."

"Cheers to Steve," I said, lifting an invisible bottle.

"We'll, I guess I'll see you on Monday, man. Take care."

"Oh! Wait Ric! About the hangar!"

He hung up.

_Damn. So that's what it felt like. I guess it can wait 'til Monday._ I placed the phone on the table, my ears a little warm.

"So how's your friend?" she said softly.

"You heard from that far? He died of a heart attack."

"Oh... Sorry about that, but you were like shouting: _But_ _how could you be there with Steve dead, man_ "

I didn't realize my voice was _that_ loud. Maybe because of all the noise or maybe I was just _really_ frustrated with all that's been going on.

"Don't worry... And sorry if I scared off your friends or something."

"No problem. They actually thought you were my boyfriend," she said, winking back at me. "Wanna go someplace quiet?"

Boyfriend? I haven't heard that word for a long time.

It was three in the early morning. We walked along the clubs, the acoustic bars, the empty bottles and the sleeping customers. The noise finally settled down. Eventually, we ended up at a 7/11. She bought ten bottles of San Mig Lights. We then went to a condo, a little _too_ high-end for my taste. Giant lions blew water from their mouths as valets stood by the entrance; the royal carpet rolled from the top, which only highlighted the grandeur of the master staircase. The grand chandelier hung perfectly in the middle; the ceiling adorned with gods and goddesses.

"Hey Cecilio," she greeted the guard at the entrance.

"Goodmorning, Ms. Janet," he replied "How are you?"

"Still sober!"

"Good."

He nodded, staring intensely at me.

"What's up with Cecilio?" I asked sarcastically. "It's like he's going to kill me."

"Oh, don't worry about Cecilio. He's just memorizing your face."

"What? Is he like your _terminator_? Scanning me and all that?"

"I don't need one," she said, pointing at the floor buttons. "Hey, click 90."

"That's really high. I didn't know you were _that_ rich."

"Not really. I just like it up here."

"C'mon... _Ms. Janet_?"

"Let's not make a big deal out of it, okay?" she said, staring at me. We stood right beside each other, shoulder to shoulder. Inside the elevator, I smelled her hair— _Chrysanthemum_.

"I love your smell," I whispered. Then I thought it sounded creepy. I hadn't been with a girl for quite a while, and for a few seconds, I thought she was going to pull the pepper spray on me.

"Edward? Is that you?" She laughed to my relief.

_I just love this girl,_ I thought to myself. _I could talk to her all day and never have that dull, what-did-you-say expression in her face._

90th lighted up. The door opened.

"Wow!" I said. But this was not a _wow_ of sarcasm or insult. This was true pure awesomeness. The elevator opened to the center of a large, roofless garden. There were fountains flowing, dim light hung over the trees, fishes swam on the pond by the corner. The stars shined overhead and the night brought in a comfortable breeze. Below, we could see the lights of the bars; the cars were smaller than matchboxes. It was astonishing. We sat by the bench, just enough to get a view of everything.

"Cool, isn't it?"

"Yeah. _Really_ cool," I said, opening the bottle with my keychain. "I never thought something like this was up here."

"Hey, hey! Look who's thirsty," she said as she opened up her palm. "Give me one."

I popped another bottle and handed it to her.

"Here you go, princess."

" _Princess_?" her voice rose, her eyes narrowed. "Of all the things you could call me, you just had to come up with _Princess?_ "

"Alright, sorry about that."

I took my first sip. It was refreshing.

I haven't had cold beer for a while. And the breeze only made it better.

"Just kidding. You see, my _ex_ used to call me that," she said, raising the bottom of the bottle. She was thirsty, too.

"I see." I smiled at her. "Don't worry. From today on, you're just Janet."

"Thanks, Ayel."

After a few minutes, we popped another round. We were thirsty, alright. She opened her phone and played _Ang Huling El Bimbo._

"Hey! I love that song," I said. "One of the classics."

"Me too..." she said softly.

"They had a good run, you know. They should have stopped while they were still on the top."

"Yeah... All they have is crap now," she said. I couldn't have agreed more.

"♫. _..na tinuruan mo ang puso ko na umibig ng tunay._ ♫ _"_ Ely serenaded us in the background.

"Think about it. The Eheads was considered the pioneer of mainstream original rock. Although they were responsible for creating such awareness, they were also the ones responsible for killing the idea."

"Really? That's probably true," she said; her voice weaker, followed by a yawn. "Maybe in a better, parallel universe, the Eheads _did_ disband."

_Parallel universe?_ This girl just keeps getting better and better.

Time passed. The song was still playing. She had it in a loop.

"It's getting cold, isn't it?" Janet said as she rubbed her hands together, blowing her breath to warm herself up.

"Here," I said, wrapping my favorite black jacket around her. "Still cold?"

"How 'bout you, Ayel? Do I have to worry about any _girls_?" she whispered in my ear. I was taken aback. If I hadn't known any better, I'd say she was _flirting_. Or maybe it was just the alcohol finally taking its toll.

"Janet, you're already drunk. You need to go home now."

We were down to the last two bottles.

"Hey... Answer me..." she said, pushing herself against me.

"You have nothing to worry about me," I said softly, clearing her hair aside so I could see her face. "My last relationship ended two years ago. It was a nice gift, really."

"Really? That's good."

Her body fell into my lap; her head faced upward towards me.

"Look at that, can you see the Kite?" She pointed to the stars. "It's my favorite constellation."

"What kite?" I looked up, searching for it. "Is there even a constellation like that?"

"Concentrate. Look harder," she urged me. "Can you see it now?"

"Yeah... It's the Big Dipper."

"Why should it be? It's much better if it's a _kite,_ right? The guy who discovered it was such a loser. Big Dipper? Hmp... stupd... losr..." she mumbled inaudibly, pushing her face to my belly.

"I like it here. Hmm... It's warm..." she said with the cutest little voice.

"What floor are you? I'm going to take you there now."

"Just a little more..."

"It's getting much colder now."

"Alright..." she whispered. "68th"

"Okay, let's go."

"Wait... Just one more minute..."

"Okay..."

"Uhm... About your friend. What was his name again?"

"Steve."

"To Stevey!" she said with her eyes closed, raising her arms as if she had a bottle left.

"To Stevey."

##

##

##

##

## PHASE 6

## THE MANUAL TEAM

Monday morning. I opened my eyes and found Kulimlim quietly staring at me. She was still mad with the _drinking-and-forgot-to-leave-her-food_ incident.

"C'mon..." I said, kissing her nose to nose. "Can't you forgive me?"

She gave off a weak purr.

"You know you need a diet." I said. "You're getting fat sitting here all day."

She yowled, obviously not amused with my sense of humor.

"Sometimes I wonder if you can actually understand me."

I raised her high, shaking her cute little body. She wiggled her tail. She was so irresistible. I pulled her to my face, squeezing her tight; her soft black fur was like a pillow in my cheek—cold and smooth. She licked my face over and over again.

"I knew you'd forgive me! C'mon! It's time to eat!"

She dropped fast and went to the kitchen. I opened a treat and poured it into her bowl. It was different from her usual canned tuna, but she gave into it anyway.

I opened a box of cereal and popped a bottle of soya milk _._ I started to nibble on them as I drank from the cold bottle. As I pressed hard on the red button, the face of a man stunned me; he looked younger, obviously a 1x1 copy of your typical company ID. It was Steve, my colleague, my friend.

The morning reporter continued:

" _An employee at Tantuco Solutions suffered a heart attack last Wednesday night as he was found dead inside the restroom. The employee, a 26-year-old Filipino identified to be Steven Laurel, was recently reported to be going home 2AM in the early morning and going back to work the next day at 8AM for about five weeks straight. This case of death by overwork, or Karoshi, is not Tantuco Solutions' first incident._

In India (where they have a regular working day of 16 hours), people have been suffering strokes and heart attacks due to extensive work and stress. The same goes for the Japanese branch, as well as in the American branch where the last was a 21-year-old intern named Moritz Erhardt. With this, unions are growing and the government may need to put a cap on the working hours. But with the rising expenses these days, people who have families have no choice but to go to work. Rest assured, the government has stated it will do its best to settle the issue with Tantuco."

Settle my ass. The government never does anything. They never do. Besides the overwhelming tax, Tantuco has already paid them their premium cut, like a store filled with pirated CDs who always happens to know when the police will arrive. It's all a show, I tell you. It's all a show.

I looked up the window; pods already lined up. Anne, in her new Folded and Hung ad, (and wearing only a denim jacket, I might add) stared at me with such a naughty look.

"Another day."

At the office, I saw Janet by the lobby. She was about six persons ahead of me on the line to the elevator. She was busy texting. Then I noticed all the guys in front of me were staring at one direction—the _receptionist's_. She was pretty, long legged, had messy hair all over her face. Just the way I like it.

"She's hot, eh? " a deep voice surfaced behind me.

"Yeah... Really nice— " I turned around.

"Yo man! Gotcha!" The guy in the super-fit long sleeve said.

"Hey Ric! Long time no see!" I said, bumping his fist.

"Yeah, long time it is. And I see we have a new hostess here?" he said; his eyes concentrated on her like an eagle to its prey. "She's new right?"

"Yeah... trying to boost the people's engagement I guess?"

He laughed hard. "I don't know, but it's sure working on me, man."

Ric was always the more _vocal_ of the two of us. I remember our usual _lunchcapades_ when we were still in _training camp_. We ate at different places just to check out the "menu" they had to offer. We would usually compete for the chair with the best view. One time, he got it first, but there was nothing to see behind him. What did I do? I sat beside him. He was like, "Man, seriously? Not manly at all." I just laughed. I miss those times.

"You should visit me at the hangar later," he said. "I'll show you something cool."

"Alright!" I said as I remembered the incident with grumpy and junior. "I'll show you something cool, too."

Ric raised a brow. I thought of saying it to him right there and then, but maybe it wasn't really _safe_ in the open. The elevator doors opened. The line moved along. Ric went to the other one going down.

"See ya later, man!" he said, squeezing himself to fit in the crowd.

"See ya!"

I entered, finding the right spot to place myself so I wouldn't get flattened by the incoming stampede.

I leaned on the back right corner. People began to pour in. It was just like the MRT— _packed sardines_.

"66th, please," a girl said.

The guy in front pressed the button.

Then suddenly, I smelled it.

_Chrysanthemum._ I looked to my left. It was her.

"Hello" I whispered.

"Oh, hello." She was startled. "Didn't notice you there."

"Sorry 'bout last Friday," I continued.

"Oh... Don't worry 'bout that."

And then I was dumbfounded. I was speechless. _What's wrong with me? There was nothing wrong with what I did, right?_ I thought to myself.

The door opened at 3rd, then 25th, then 40th.

Suddenly, it was just us. It was the worse three seconds of my life. The door soon opened. All my teammates were right in front of us.

"Hey guys! Look who came together!" Ryan announced.

"Wow! Ayel, you devil!" Robin said as she patted my back.

"C'mon guys, we just happened to arrive at the same time," I defended. "No big deal."

"Whoooooooo!" they all said together.

I looked at Janet. She was just standing there, smiling oddly.

_I guess she's used to this,_ I thought to myself.

"Alright guys, lower down," Elaine said, controlling the crowd. "Ayel and Janet, just follow to Room 78.12."

"Yes boss!" I said saluting.

I flashed my badge and opened the door for Janet. The others went into the elevator.

"I'll just drop my bag on my desk," I said, sprinting to my cube.

"Okay."

Okay? What's wrong with her? The cheerful and interesting Janet suddenly became this shy silent snob.

I went back to the floor door; she wasn't there.

Maybe she went to the restroom? Girls usually take their time.

Sometimes I wonder if they have a sauna bath there, or maybe a salon, or a foot spa. But then again, maybe it's their _Gossip Station,_ you know. Perhaps it's the reason why girls ask other girls to come along with them. About ten minutes went by. No Janet yet.

Where is she?

My phone rang. "Hey Ayel? Where are you? Janet is already here. We're waiting for you," Yvonne said.

What was I thinking? She didn't even wait for me?

I was kind of pissed. _What the hell's the matter with her? Is she intentionally avoiding me?_

Inside the room, I saw her sitting across the table. She didn't even look.

"Where have you been Ayel?" Elaine said.

"Uhh, just checked some email boss."

"Okay. Next time, you can do that later."

"Okay boss."

The meeting began. I looked at her from time to time. She never looked back. She was just there, playing with her phone, occasionally having small talk with Ryan.

_What's her game? Or maybe that's how fresh grads are these days?_ I kept thinking and thinking about her.

She was cold; she was heartless.

She was the Queen of Casuals.

I grew tired. _*Sigh*... Forget about her,_ I said to myself.

Suddenly, my phone vibrated. I checked the message:

"Hello."

It was that unknown number again, last digits _6750._ I looked at my teammates. Maybe someone was playing a joke on me? It didn't look like it. Robin was busy discussing the new approach we had with the ongoing _automation._ Ryan was busy talking to Janet. As for Yvonne and Elaine, it couldn't have been them.

Maybe it's Ric?

I decided to call him later. He once pulled a prank on me, pretending to be a girl text mate.

An hour passed; the meeting was over.

I looked at the clock and it was already lunch. I decided to pay my friend a visit. I went down to the hangar again.

As the elevator door opened, I found a whole city underneath. PZX-Rs moved around like people, some carried poles and pillars; others lifted pod parts with their cranes. Rovers passed by like cars, the sparks flickered here and there; hard hats everywhere.

_Machines making machines_ , I said to myself.

This was the hangar as it was supposed to be, back to its filthy deafening glory. I remember my father. He was an architect. He used to take me to this kind of things when I was just a child. Probably thought I was going to inherit the family business, or at least _his_ business. I thought the same. I drew houses when I was a kid; the kind where the walls were transparent so you could see the inside, sort of like the floor plans I saw in his desk every day. My favorite was the tree house. I would draw on his scratch papers; there were tons of them. But soon I lost track of the visits; the houses just got bigger and bigger.

I moved toward _Area 3_ —Ric's territory. A large sign board hung a little off the lateral; a little budge and it would probably fall.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPT.

I passed the gate and walked along the cables and the couplings. It was more... _civilized_ in this area compared to the ruckus on Area 1. Paperwork and blueprints scattered on the tables where engineers debated with their handy dandy tape measures.

_B2K2,_ it said on the dock.

"Hey man!" Ric said as he opened the cockpit of his robot. Unlike the amber construction models and the green-camouflaged military lines, Ric's panzer motif was way cooler: red and gold.

"Ironman, eh?" I said, moving back to have a full view of the mechanical wonder. "Nice."

"Wanna take it for a ride?" he asked.

I never did like driving. The daily accidents, the insurance companies, the expensive parking and the weekly price hikes; it was such a drag. But a robot? This was every kid's fantasy.

"Yeah! Why not?"

He turned off the power and jumped down.

I climbed up, hoisting myself like a monkey.

"Not like that, man." Ric laughed. "You gotta step on those footholds."

"Oh, okay!" I said, obviously excited.

The robot, panzer, or _mecha,_ for those who watch animé, was about 14ft like the other models, though this one was a bit... _leaner_. I climbed up the legs, then up to the chest where the cockpit was. The chest armor opened upward, sort of like your typical DeLorean door, if you know what I mean.

"Now set your legs on the lower limb controllers," he said. If I wasn't a panzer programmer, I'd have no idea what he was babbling about. "You gotta squeeze it in and strap the belt tight."

It was comfortable, actually. The lower limb controllers were like large metal boots that extended up to the thighs. They had a cushion inside so it wasn't really that bad. "Now strap the body belts on!" he added. "Now, can you see the ignition barrel by your right side?"

"Yup!" I said as I twisted the keys. The engine began to vibrate; the machine was alive.

"Someone's excited," Ric said. "Be careful now. A slight movement of those upper limb controllers and you could punch a hole in the wall."

Was that supposed to settle me down? It only got me more excited with my new toy. I inserted my hands into the upper limb controllers; they were like gloves with wires and cables strapped all around. Suddenly, I was inside a _Knightmare Frame,_ ready to take on Holy Britannia _._ I started with my hands. It was so cool, seeing the fingers of the panzer move simultaneously as I moved mine.

"Pretty nifty, eh?"

"Yeah! Did you do something with the response time?"

"You bet I did! I adjusted the frame response to 0.5 seconds without the hydraulics overheating." He boasted. " It's all in the lubricant."

"Really?" I said as I started to move my legs.

"Yeah! Nothing like the sluggish controls of the construction models here," he added. "This one is as good as those _military_ lines."

With all the excitement, I forgot the reason I came to see him.

"About that Ric," I said.

"What? Anyway, you should try it with the door closed! Put on the helmet!" he yelled, obviously not hearing me. "And don't forget to turn on the _mic_! I added some cool stuff that will blow your mind!"

I thought it could wait. Once the door was closed, the inside of the cockpit began to light up, flashing blue all around me. I fastened the helmet. It wasn't really a helmet; it was more of a headpiece with a visor connected to wires that controlled the head of the panzer, allowing me to see and move the view as I tilted my head. Through it, I saw Ric with a target piece with his name on his head.

I turned the mic switch ON.

"Cool, man! You added a database?" I said.

"Not just a database, man. Say _Hello Garci._ "

"Hello Garci."

"Hello Ayel del Rio," a sexy female voice said.

"What the—How the hell?" I said, confused and stricken with awe.

He laughed at my amusement. "Pretty sexy voice, eh?"

"Sounds familiar. Who's voice was that?"

"Anyone I like! But right now, it's Anne Curtis'."

"Woah.. Pretty cool, man. Where did you get the voice?"

"From various commercials, actually. I have this voice duplicator that records and reproduces complete sentences."

"Nice." I said, as I thought of borrowing it later. "How bou't my name? Did you record that too?"

"What? Believe it or not, man, Garci here just looked you up on Facebook."

"What?"

"It's online, man! She scanned your face and looked you up on all the available matches in the internet."

"No way, man. That's _waaay_ too cool."

"If she didn't find any match, she would ask you to identify yourself."

"Alright. You got me," I said. "This _is_ the coolest I've seen so far."

"What? It's not even over yet," he said. "Say _Hello_ _Garci: Play music._ "

"Hello Garci: Play music," I repeated.

"Please state the title of the song followed by the artist." Anne's cute little voice said.

_What the hell has Ric been doing?_ I said to myself.

"Fruitcake. The Eraserheads."

"Searching... Searching... Record found. Now Playing: Fruitcake by The Eraserheads."

"Was that Anne Curtis' voice? You plugged in your collection now?"

"Cool, eh? She searched it in the net too, just like your name," he explained. "With the voice command 'Hello Garci,' I can basically program her to recognize a list of actions at my disposal."

"Wow! You really blew my mind with this."

"Huh? The Hello Garci program had been around since 2014," he said. "Basically, I just pimped my ride."

"Really? Never heard of it."

"Where have you been living, man?" he said. "That's why I'm telling you to bury that phone of yours and buy a smart phone. You're missing out on so many cool stuff."

Maybe it was true, maybe I was a little outdated. I just didn't see the need, especially with new iterations coming out less than a year. I just saw it as another _join-the band-wagon_ thing. Just like nursing. I then realized that I didn't really own any kind of _panzer_ device. You see, I'm an old fashioned kind of guy. I prefer books over ebooks, my old phone over smart phones, TVs over holograms, old Meralco over The Source. Plus it's _way_ cheaper. It's just more logical. After a few minutes, someone called Ric.

"I'll be back in a while!" Ric said. "Just don't destroy the place, okay?"

"Yes boss!" I said as the panzer saluted.

It was fun. I learned you have to swing your arm a little sideways if you wanted to turn around. You had to tilt the weight to initiate the momentum. The rest was easy. Moving the limb controllers was as easy as moving my own arms and feet. The head tilted smoothly too, allowing me to see easily what was around me. Then I saw the thruster lever. I remembered one of the CR's I worked on—CR 2000. It was to enhance the thrusters on the back of the panzers with a more efficient radiator. The lever indicated Level 1 to 5. Charging it to 5 would send you flying towards whatever what was in front of you. I was tempted, of course, but there was so little space, and Ric would have killed me if I landed a single scratch on his baby.

"♫ _Take a bite... It's alright... There's some brandy and star margarine to make it bright..._ ♫ _"_ Ely sang as I banged my head, _rock-and-roll_ style. The panzer followed my beat as I strummed an invisible guitar. It felt like I was inside a pimped-up car with loud subwoofers. It was so cool. The other engineers began to take notice, but I didn't care about them. After thirty minutes of rocking and playing around, Ric came back.

"I see you're enjoying yourself," he said. "Wanna change departments?"

For a moment, I was tempted. Riding a robot was one thing, building it from scratch was another.

"Not really. Hardware was never really on my side," I said. "I'm more of a software guy."

"Whatever! Your loss, man."

I opened the cockpit door and turned off the engine. "Whew! That was fun!"

"Wanna get out of here?" Ric said. "I'm starving."

"Oh, Ric," I said. "There's something I was meaning to ask you."

"What?"

## PHASE 7

## HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL

We ended up at our favorite burger joint.

"I'll have a Running burger," I said.

"I'll have the Crunchy Burger," Ric added. "And some onion fries."

"Drinks, sir?" she asked.

"Just water," I said.

"Lemonade for me, Ms... Michelle," Ric said as he winked at the pretty waitress.

"Okay, sir. Please wait for fifteen minutes," Michelle said as she went to the back.

"Really, man?" I said. "Since when did you become such a ladies' man?"

"I was just being nice man," he said, resting his arms behind his head. "I would have taught Steve a thing or two."

And then it came back to me. "About that..."

"About what?"

"Did you see the news this morning?"

Ric snickered. "Is that you, man? You're watching the news now?"

"Not really. It was Steve, you know."

"Oh! Speaking of Steve, his cousin called me up."

"Really? So he _has_ relatives." I moved closer. "How did they get your number?"

"Apparently, Steve talks about us. They probably got the number from his phone."

I raised an eyebrow. "What did they say?"

"His cousin is asking if we want to visit him."

"Oh, okay. At least they have the body now. When and where?"

"Tomorrow night. I know the place."

"Sure. That's fine."

"Alright then."

"Oh about the hangar. I was there the last time. The lights were out but I saw this container. Something was inside it!" I said, a little bit of excitement building up. For a moment, Ric didn't speak. His eyes stared blankly.

"Hey Ric?" I waived my hand at his face. "You alright?"

Suddenly he spoke. "You don't really need to convince yourself with that," he said, his voice, flat.

"What? Are you going _terminator_ with me now?" I said, kidding him. "Do you know about it?"

He stared at me, unwavering.

For a moment, I thought I saw the guy at the back staring at me too. _Could he have heard me?_

"What else did you see?" He asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Nothing really. Just a few guards talking about it," I said. "What was inside it anyway?"

"A generator," he replied swiftly. "The guys at the fusion department were developing a new model."

"Really? And it was stolen?"

"No. They just moved it to a more secured location. Perhaps the guards were inappropriately uninformed."

"I see. Makes sense. Sometimes I watch _way_ too much movies, you know. Conspiracies and all that."

"What else did you see?"

"Nothing much. Just the military lines."

"You know these are _highly confidential_ information, right?"

He may have been the playboy type, but when it came to work, Ric was always serious.

"Yeah, sure." I said.

Ric was about to add something when Michelle came in.

"Lemonade and onion fries," she said, winking at him. Suddenly, Ric was back to flirting mode.

"What time do you get off, Michelle?"

"Around ten, sir—"

"Ric," he added. "Call me Ric."

Just like the old times. The flirting continued on and Ric didn't even ask for her number; she just gave it to him.

The burgers followed later and soon I was back on my cube.

My spot was situated around the corner near the fire exit. It had just the right lighting and temperature that made it somehow comfortable. I turned on the monitor and began to browse my email. As I scrolled down the inbox, someone popped me.

janet_skokie: "Hey! "

It was her. _What did she want this time? After ignoring me like nothing happened, she doesn't even have the guts to talk to me in person?_

My fingers were aching to type something. Anything.

_I have to relax. I have to play it coo_ l.

masterAyel: "Hey"

janet_skokie: "How are you?"

masterAyel: "I'm ok."

janet_skokie: "Oh ok... Sorry 'bout this morning. I wasn't really feeling myself."

masterAyel: "Why? Are you ill?"

janet_skokie: "Not really. Uhm... It's just..."

masterAyel: "What?"

What indeed. Sometimes I wish girls would just say what they really meant.

janet_skokie: "It's the time of the month for me. I had a stain. The girl behind me was kind enough to point it out."

masterAyel: "Oh"

janet_skokie: "I was panicking. And when I saw you, I was so embarrassed that I didn't know what to do."

All of a sudden, everything fell into place. The mood changed.

What the hell was I thinking? Stupid, stupid Ayel.

masterAyel: "Sorry... I didn't know. "

janet_skokie: "Why are you apologizing? It's not your fault."

masterAyel: "Uh... Okay."

janet_skokie: 'lol! You're really funny you know that?"

masterAyel: "Not really."

I decide to take a gamble.

masterAyel: "Wanna watch _Thor_ 5 later?"

She began typing, then she stopped.

_What the hell._ Sometimes I think girls _do_ have some sort of power over boys. They can read and confuse your minds, stop time, hypnotize you, make you do things out of your will, render you speechless or even predict the future. Don't you just hate the feeling but love it all the same? I tapped and tapped on my mouse like it was going to help, and after a day in _anxious-boy-waiting-for-girls'-reply-to-date-invite_ time, she replied.

janet_skokie: "Sure!"

I almost jumped from my chair. My arms raised up high.

"Yatta!" I said aloud.

My teammates turned around with raised eye browses, but by that time, they were already used to how weird I was.

janet_skokie: "Shhh! I can hear you from here!"

masterAyel: "Ooops! I forgot you were just around the corner."

janet_skokie: "You really make me laugh. lol"

masterAyel: "That's good!"

janet_skokie: "Have you checked the time?"

masterAyel: "Oh wait, I'll look it up now."

janet_skokie: "Ok... "

masterAyel: "For Cinema 1, looks like we have a 10:30PM last showing."

janet_skokie: "That'll do for me. How 'bout you?"

masterAyel: "Yep that's fine with me too!"

janet_skokie: "Cool "

masterAyel: "But I'm going down there 'bout 5 to buy the tickets so we won't have any problems later on."

janet_skokie: "Sure. I'll come with you. I need to buy something anyway."

masterAyel: "You sure? I mean, _you_ know."

janet_skokie: "Don't worry. Everybody takes a break at 5 anyway."

masterAyel: "Ok "

The conversation continued. It was all smooth sailing from there. I hoped it was.

Time passed. The clock struck a quarter past ten.

I stood up to pack. For a moment, all of my teammates were staring at me.

_What?_ I said to myself. _Jeez_

Somehow, if you spend eleven hours in the office sitting, you start to look like a machine yourself. Every action and reaction simply becomes _automatic_.

"Robots," I whispered to myself.

She went ahead half an hour earlier. I followed on later to avoid the usual commotion in the office. We arrived later in the mall. The usual stampede of corporate people flooded the entrance: some going home filled up the streets and sidewalks while others going the opposite direction were just about to begin their day, or their night? The thing about corporate peeps or perhaps most institutionalized businesses is there isn't really an age bracket. From fresh young incomers to striving veterans, you will most likely have made friends with the old and the young; not like in college where the difference between the age group is significantly restricted to yours'.

"Want to grab something to eat first?" I said.

"Yeah! Let's buy something by the cinema."

From Taters, she ordered a combo. I ordered my usual onion rings.

"How 'bout drinks?" she asked.

"Just water for me. Order what you want."

"They only have bottled here, you know."

"Oh yeah. It's alright. I'm not really that thirsty anyway."

"Okay. One large ice tea, please," she said, smiling at me. "We can just share."

She was so cute. I would have stared at her the whole night, but we still had a movie to watch.

"You sure 'bout that?"

"What? It's not like I have rabies or something."

"Just kidding. Alright, let's go!"

The line was long, and by the time we got inside, it was already dark and the cinema was almost full.

"Good thing we already bought the tickets!" she said.

"Yeah. What're our seats again?"

"Can't really see it."

I felt _The_ _Force_. I pulled my handy dandy _lightsaber_ out and pierced the ticket.

"H14 to 15," I said.

"I'm starting to love that phone of yours."

"Really? Deciding to get one?"

"Ugh... Not _that_ much."

I laughed at her expression. "Over here."

We squeezed through until we finally found our seats. The trailers continued to roll.

"Wow! Just in time. It hasn't begun yet." I said.

"Yeah. Oh here's your onion rings," she added, handing me the box.

"Thanks."

"Oh! And remind me. I'll pay you later for the tickets."

"No worries. I invited you anyway."

"But it's 5D-Virtual! It's too much. We should have just bought tickets tomorrow for the 2D cinemas."

"No big deal, really. Plus the 2D ones are always full."

"Okay..."

I smiled at her. No it wasn't okay. The tickets were worth 20K _each._ Damn Tantuco. Why did they have to invade the cinemas too? I love watching movies, but I stopped when it became too expensive. They just _had_ to use panzer shit on everything. And 5D? Is that even geometrically possible?

After two and a half hours of dazzling 5D effects (whatever that meant), sharing straws and a few screams over Mighty Thor every now and then, we found ourselves back to reality.

I stretched my arms. "Whew! That was a good movie, huh? "

"Oh My God! Chris Hemsworth is so chunky!"

"Did you watch the movie at all? Or just his body?"

"C'mon! Those abs! Yummy!"

I sighed. "And girls complain when we're drooling over chicks. Not fair at all."

She laughed at my comment. "Just kidding! Where do you wanna go now?"

"Don't have anything in mind. All the shops are already closed."

"Okay... Let's just walk around."

We went down the escalator and found ourselves outside _City Walk_. Apparently, it had just stopped raining and the cool breeze was a welcome. Radiant lanterns hung by the trees and the wooden beams, giving the illusion that stars were slowly falling down on us. Soft relaxing acoustics blended with tiny voices of chatter among teenage girls. A few peeps drank here and there. The usual foreigner with a _pinay_ girlfriend on the corner; waitresses stood by the trail as they put on the best smile they could. No noisy drunkards, no smelly sidewalks and no beggars carrying their babies around. Now don't you wish the whole country was like this? I mean, it's like a mini Singapore here: clean, safe and civilized. It was my favorite; it was the best. It was _Eastwood_ , just the way I like it.

"Hey! Look at this," she pointed at the pavement. "What do you think it would take to get your name here?"

"The Walk of Fame? I don't know."

"You're not really the _actor_ type, eh? "

I shook my head. "Not really. I'm more of the _writer_ type."

"Cool! So you write stories?"

"Uh yeah, sort of like a hobby of mine."

"Wow! Tell me about it. C'mon!"

We sat by the benches as the fountain swayed to the rhythm of Taylor Swift's _Love Story_.

"I write stories about our country's current economical situation and what the government and the Church are doing about it."

"That's kind of..."

"Controversial?"

"Yeah! We don't really get a lot of activist writers these days."

"I know. But these are things that are worth mentioning. People have to become aware, you know."

"So you go out and protest?"

"Me? Of course not!" I laughed at the idea. "I'm not _that_ stupid."

"So you just write? Do you have a blog?"

"Yeah..."

"Wow... You're really brave," she said as she stared at the fountain lights. "So what do you think about the Church?"

"About the RH Bill and everything?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, since the government mentioned that abortion is pretty much out of the picture, then I'm up for it."

"But isn't it wrong?"

"Think about it. Our country is one of the most overpopulated countries in the world."

"So you're against the Church?"

"The Medieval Church, yes. The modern, well, I guess just their opinion."

"Hmm... I see. You're complicated."

I laughed again. She really had more to her than meets the eye.

"Look at it this way," I said. "Who are using condoms and pills these days?"

"Everyone?"

"Be a little more specific."

"Uhm... Teenagers?"

"And?

"People who follow family planning?"

"And to which economic class do these people belong to?"

"Mostly the middle class to the elite."

"Precisely!" I applauded. "And how do they make up the population?"

"Just a small percent."

"How about the larger portion of the population?"

"Mostly the poor."

"And do you think the poor are using condoms?"

"Alright! I get it," she said, raising her hands in surrender. "So you think if we give condoms to the poor, then overpopulation can be avoided?"

"Avoided? I don't think so," I said as I scratched my chin. "But at least we can limit the numbers, if we can manage to educate the mindless monkeys without jobs, that is."

She smiled. "You keep on surprising me, Mr. del Rio."

"Do you get my point now?"

"I do. I just don't think the Church would agree."

"I don't have anything against them, really. But I believe that religion should be followed with logic, and not just blindly following orders for the sake of tradition or conservatism. I mean look at Jesus. He broke one of the Ten Commandments by healing someone during the Sabbath Day. And that was just one of the many signs of rebellion he showed which annoyed the Church at that time—"

"Which lead to his crucifixion," she interrupted.

"I know, right?"

"So do you want to be crucified, Mr. del Rio?"

I laughed. "And have some religion worship me and claim my name for their own-doings? Ha! No way. Forget it. I'd rather they just burn me."

She giggled. "You're really weird, Ayel."

"What?"

"I mean, weird in a good way. You're... _different_ from all the others."

"How is that?"

"They say you're really strange and silent, but now I'm starting to think that you actually have a lot going on in your head."

"Hello? Einstein, Da Vinci, Beethoven, and heck even Jesus Christ—all the geniuses _are_ weird. All of them have been considered crazy at some point in their lives because they defied conventions and saw the world outside the mainstream."

"So you're a genius now?" she said as she folded her arms. "And how about people like me?"

"Hmm... If geniuses are weird, then normal people are well... just _normal_."

"Coming from you, I don't know if that's a compliment or an insult."

I laughed. "It's your choice."

She sighed. "I envy you. I wish I had _any_ talent at all."

"C'mon, don't say that. You just haven't found it yet."

"Really? When I find it, you're the first person I'm telling!"

I laughed again. Her expression was so adorable.

"Sure. That's a promise, okay?"

"Promise!"

## PHASE 8

## KAROSHI

The next day came. Nothing unusual about it though. As evening approached, the time came to visit Steve's wake. I packed my stuff and went straight to the hangar. Ric was still working on his table, assembling pieces of what seemed to be a rifle through an interactive hologram. Looking around, I saw the same model resting on a corner.

"The PZEX-SKS-BAYONET TYPE-0?" I asked.

"Hey!" He was startled. "Didn't see you there."

Ric was _in the zone,_ the look that computer nerds usually have when they're, hmm... how do I put it? Oh yeah— _in the zone_.

"What you working on? Is that what I think it is?"

"Actually, it's a new iteration. A TYPE-1"

"Wow! When did you guys start working on military lines?"

"Shhhh!" he said, putting a finger on his mouth. "It's _highly_ confidential, okay?"

"Oops! Sorry," I said, scratching my nose. "So when did you start? Are you getting transferred?"

"Not really. The guys on the higher-ups decided to _improve_ the lines they provide. They sort of loaned us to this new project."

"What project?"

"Project Omega."

"Cool! So what's with this new model?"

"Basically, it's still the same _Pilot Killer_. I just improved the adjustable stock and added a hand guard under it for a more secure grip. Plus, I adjusted the muzzle and the barrel to lessen the recoil so you can fire this baby even if you're running."

"And with the blade, you're pretty much unstoppable, right?"

"Yeah! That's the idea."

Ric was always the mechanical genius among our group. Back in college, he would build human-size robots just for fun. For his thesis, he built a small scale PZX-R model while his classmates showcased circuit boards. I bet you can guess who won.

"Hey! C'mon, man it's getting late. We still have a wake to go to."

"Oh yeah! I almost forgot!"

He saved his file and turned off the hologram. "Let's go!"

By the time we got outside, the rain was pouring hard. "Damn! Not right now."

"Don't worry, I brought my _Angel_ with me."

He pulled a remote from his pocket and a red PZA-CX-7 rolled-in to pick us up. He pressed another button and the doors opened.

"Hop in!" Ric said.

"Mazda? Is that a new feature?"

"Yeah! Very handy when picking up the girls."

"Nice."

We sat inside; the doors began to close.

"Hello Garci: Set autopilot ON," he said.

"Please state the address or nearest landmark," another familiar voice answered.

"California Meadows, Libertad, Mandaluyong."

"What? It's just around my place? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Surprise!"

"I didn't know Steve lived there."

"He didn't. Only his cousin does."

"Oh... Okay."

The pod began to rise.

"Is that Angel Locsin's voice this time?" I asked, quite sure I was right.

"That's correct!"

"Damn! I gotta have that voice duplicator."

I looked outside. Bright lights began to fade as we left the great city. With the heavy downpour, all we could see were the headlights of other pods and the lighted floors of distant towers. I turned to look around inside.

"Wow! You already bought a PZG-VITA02?"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you. Go ahead."

"Cool. Original games?"

"Of course! I'm not cheap enough to crack my console just to play free games."

"Good. I heard they can track you now if you tried."

"Yeah. The anti-piracy guys are more relentless these days."

Ric was the classic example of a man. Games, girls, gadgets; he had it all. But he wasn't always this cool back in college, especially high school. Back then, he was even more of a nerd than me since he was always studying.

_Corporate life really changes people,_ I thought.

"I remember you were planning to buy one?"

"Yeah, but it's so expensive! The cheapest I saw was around 375K! How much did you score for this?"

"Around the same price as well."

"Darn! Still too much for me. I'm going to stick with the old _portable_ for a while."

"Suit yourself."

"Hey, what do you think about the future of dedicated gaming consoles? I mean, with all the smart phones coming up."

"I know, right? Casual games are everywhere. It's a smart move on the mobile industry's part, actually."

"Well, I guess that's just how it is. They just took advantage of the _niche_ market," I said. "You know I just miss the old days. Remember how we used to play every Friday night at my house? RPGs, platforms, brawlers, fighting and two-player coops. It was the life, you know."

He began to chuckle. "You still remember how I beat you up?"

"Hey! Those don't count. You were using _beginner_ mode. I was on _normal_."

"Who told you to use _normal_?" Ric said, laughing his heart out.

We went on to talk more about the old days: the days before college, before high school, before any of this. Soon we were above _California Meadows._

"Hello Garci: Set autopilot OFF."

"Setting autopilot OFF. Reverting to manual drive," Angel replied.

"So now what?"

He started to turn the steering wheel.

"The message says, 'across the street from the condo, two blocks straight then turn right.'"

"There! I see it," I said, pointing below. "The small house with all the flowers and tables by the gate."

Ric maneuvered the pod and parked just across the street from the gathering outside.

"Did we get the wrong house?" Ric asked.

"I don't think so. Why?"

"Looks like a party here."

That's really something I admire about the Filipinos. They would use _any_ occasion just to catch up and have a few drinks, whether someone was baptized, married, or in this case— _died_. Tables with bottles were scattered just outside the gate; the garage had a buffet table adorned with flowers on the corners. It was your typical Filipino house _lamay._

"C'mon Ric, haven't you been to a wake before?"

"Not like this. I mean, look at them! They're drunk for God's sake. They don't even look like relatives."

"I know. Probably neighbors."

"More like tricycle drivers to me."

We moved along inside. The smelly drunkards stared at us; a few wiped their noses with their shoulder towels while another spat on the cement.

"Disgusting," Ric whispered.

"Shhh!"

After surviving the _plague_ , we found ourselves welcomed by a pale woman who was probably in her mid-40s. She was wearing a black _bistida_.

"Oh... Hello. You must be Steve's friends."

"Goodevening, ma'am," Ric said. "You must be Erika? We spoke on the phone yesterday."

"Oh, yes! Then you must be Ric."

"Yes, that's me. And this is our friend—"

"Ayel?" she interrupted.

"Yes, that's me."

"Oh! Please do come in. Have you eaten yet? I prepared some _pancit_ and _adobo_ over there."

"Oh, thank you, but I just ate a while ago," I said.

"Suit yourself, man. I haven't eaten since lunch yet."

Ric moved to the garage and stood on the buffet line.

"Are you really fine, Ayel?"

"I'm alright, don't worry."

"Okay. Oh please sit down over here."

A fan light decorated the ceiling; a painting of running horses hung by the right side while _sala_ set pieces covered the living room carpet. It was your regular middle-class residence. A few benches were lined up like your typical wake, but I didn't notice the coffin until I sat down. There was _none._

"Cremated?"

"Yes. You see, we didn't really have the budget. Most were used up during Teddy and Mara's burial—Steve's parents."

"I see. If I may ask, what happened to them?"

"It was a car accident. Steve was just about six when it happened. He was sitting at the back. He was the only one who survived."

"Oh. He never told me."

"Since the accident, Steve was never really the same."

"So I guess you weren't that close either?"

"Not really. You see, when his parents died, Danny and I took him in, being the closest relative and all. But Steve never really opened up to us. He was always locked up in his room. He was almost... _detached_ from the world."

"Poor Steve. It must have been really hard on him."

"Yes, but now that you mention it, there was this one time he visited us a few months before his heart attack."

"Really? What happened?"

"Nothing much, really, he just stayed for a while playing with the boys."

She placed her hand on her forehead. "Though he said something he never said before."

"And what was that?"

"He said, 'I love you Erika _._ Thanks for taking care of me. Everything will be alright now.'"

"Oh..."

"After that, I just hugged him." A tear fell from her right eye. She wiped it quickly. Her voice began to weaken, sort of like a calm before a storm. She held on strong, but more tears came pouring down.

"He was my only cousin, you know. Both of us had no brothers, no sisters; he was the closest I could get to a sibling."

I hate it when someone starts crying. You know that feeling when someone cries in front of you, that you unknowingly start to cry as well?

"I see. Steve barely talked to us too, but he was a good man. I know he was."

All of a sudden, she grabbed my hand tight. "Ayel, did you know he mentioned you? How you were so kind to him?"

That was it. A tear fell from me. Why did it have to be this way? Of all the worthless people out there, why did it have to be Steve?

"Oh... I didn't know."

"I admit my cousin was a bit weird, but he said you never thought of him that way."

Maybe I did. But I was used to hanging out with the strange, the weird, the exiles.

"Well, Steve is just... _unique._ "

She finally calmed down a bit, wiping more of her tears.

"Yes, he was."

A tall man sat beside her, gave her water and began to comfort her.

"Are you alright, honey?" he asked.

"Don't worry, I'm fine. Oh Danny, I want you to meet Ayel, Steve's friend."

"Hello Ayel." I shook his hand; his grip was strong and firm.

"Hello, sir. Condolence."

After that, he went back to comforting his wife. I stood up and went to the altar. The ash vase was so small that you couldn't see it up far.

"Kampai, Steve. Kampai," I whispered.

I began to look around. I saw one picture of Steve with his nephews. The two kids were clinging on to him, dragging him down like baby koalas. It was one of the few instances that you would actually see Steve smiling. Truly a _Kodak_ moment, I would say. What's a Kodak you would ask? With all the digital cameras and SLRs popping around, traditional films have become a thing of the past. If you say "Kodak Moment" these days, kids would most likely raise an eyebrow on you; that catchphrase is long gone. The term that used to be synonymous to photos and cameras has been reduced to a mere printing service.

"That's a nice smile," Ric said beside me.

"Yeah. They should have seen Steve drunk, eh?" I replied. "He was really the wild one."

"I don't think we should say that here."

"Ease up, man."

A noise began to stir up outside.

"What the hell is that?"

"Ric, I think that's your car's alarm."

"Oh, shit! Motherf—"

He ran outside. Apparently, someone stole the side mirror. Ric began to argue with the drunkards who were too busy yelling to notice anything. Danny was trying to quell the dispute. Suddenly, I felt someone pulling on my _barong._

"Are you Steve's friend?" the cute kid said.

"Yes. You're his nephew, right? What's your name?"

"Macoy!" he said with such a cute voice. "Have you seen Stevey?"

It came to me that they were still too young to understand the concept of death and all. The kid probably still believed in Santa Claus.

"He went on a vacation."

"Where?"

"Uhm... Somewhere far away."

"When is he coming back?"

"Uhm... I don't know."

"I hope he comes back soon! He promised to tell me a story!"

"What story?"

"He's going to save the world! He told me!"

Little Macoy started to prance around, leaping towards the sofa just like every other kid in his age would do—like _Superman_.

"Sorry 'bout that. The kids really loved Steve, you know." Erika said. "He was the older brother they never had."

"Yeah, I see they were pretty close."

The noise outside began to settle down. Danny eventually had the drunkards leave, and Ric was walking towards us.

"Sorry 'bout that Erika," Ric said, scratching the back of his head. "I'm just annoyed those drunkards didn't do anything."

"I'm terribly sorry about your side mirror. Those people were actually the barangay patrol. The oldest was the captain. I'm afraid they drank too much."

"What? Jeez..."

"C'mon Ric. At least no one got hurt."

"I guess so. Anyway, it's getting a little late. We'll be going ahead now, Erika."

"Oh! You're going already? Do you want to take some food along? I still have some _adobo_ back in the kitchen."

"Oh... No need, we're already good here. Thank you for offering." I said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Erika. No need to bother. Thanks for the adobo, it was delicious," Ric added.

"Okay. Then please be safe. Thank you so much for visiting. Steve would be happy."

"I hope he is. Say my thanks for Danny, would you?"

"Yes, Ayel. You two take care."

As we walked away from the house, I noticed another pod parked just in front of Ric's. It was a green PZA-LYNX-O3. The window was down; the man in the driver's seat stared narrowly at our direction. He was wearing a black leather duckbill hat, though I couldn't clearly paint his face. The street lights began to flicker.

"Hey Ric..."

He didn't notice at all. He was still muttering about his pod when we sat inside. Suddenly I felt my phone vibrate.

"I'll drop you off then?" he asked.

"Sure."

The pod began to rise. I opened my phone to check the message. It was the same unknown number again.

"How are you? Heard you were in Tantuco. See you around. "

Who the hell is this? I don't really like texting people who don't introduce themselves.

"Is that your new girlfriend I've been hearing about?"

"Janet? No, we're just friends."

"But you like her?"

"I guess so. We talk a lot."

"Then that's good. There haven't really been a lot of girls who could match your IQ."

I laughed at his statement, mostly because it was true. "Was it really like that back then?"

"Yeah. You used to complain how your girlfriends ignore you when you talk."

"Now that you mention it, I do remember."

"Anyway, who's that texting you?"

"I don't really know. Hey, can I check your phone? Maybe it's an old acquaintance of ours."

"Okay. Here."

I held his phone on my left hand, the other on my right. I typed the number and clicked call. The name that appeared would echo through the four corners of my bedroom for the rest of the night. It was the name that I feared the most: the forbidden, the nightmare, the _Queen of the Damned_. It was _you-know-who_ , _she-who-shall-not-be-named,_ the Devil herself. Who the hell was it? It was none other than my _ex._ God bless us all.

## PHASE 9

## MEDICAL BENEFITS

The next morning, I managed to survive the nightmare. I had a good night's sleep, really—all thirty minutes of it. As the cab arrived above Global VII, the driver turned around to me.

"Sir, where do you want to drop off?"

"What?" I said, looking confused. "You can drop me off right here."

"Look down, sir."

I opened the window and took a glance below. What I found was an increasing pile of banners and barriers scattered amongst the pavement. But this was no simple gathering; this was not a harmless herd feeding mindlessly on the growing grass. This was a group held together by a strong resolve, an integrated vision, a commanding purpose. It was a swarm, a mob, a pack of hungry, angry wolves.

"Protesters? Just perfect."

"I can drop you off by the mall, then. Even the parking lot isn't safe."

"Yes. Please do."

At the mall, I began to walk towards the cooking riot.

"FREE ENERGY FOR ALL!" they shouted us one.

"What the hell?"

"Looks like the protesters found a new hangout," a girl said beside me.

I turned to my left; it was Janet.

"Hey, how are you?"

"I'm good. We should go in by the back," she said, pulling my sleeve. "Follow me."

"Okay."

She grabbed my hand and dragged me along. She led us through the mall, to which the exit on the other side was just a few blocks away from the delivery gate at the back of the Tantuco building.

"So is this your shortcut or something?"

"Uhm...It's more of a _safe_ cut actually."

"Huh? You've been to riot-friendly companies before?"

"No. You see, one time when I was out at lunch, I happened to bump into the least person I expected to see here."

"Who?"

"My ex."

It was that word again. Was this the season of EXs? I imagined she could be anywhere, waiting for the right moment to jump from the bushes and bury her deep claws into my skin.

"Looks like I can use this too."

"What?"

"Nothing"

"Weirdo."

I just laughed at her usual comment.

"So how did you come about this secret passage?"

"It isn't a secret. Some of my batchmates go through here since it's much closer to the convenience stores."

"I see. So I guess your ex is always waiting for you at the entrance when you're out?"

"Yeah! It's like he's stalking me! I shouldn't have told him where I was working. Stupid, stupid."

"I know, right?"

"What? You got a stalker too?"

"Ahm... Not really. Not sure."

"Hmmm... Did you knock her up?"

"You see, that was the problem. I didn't. Somebody else did."

"Oh... Sorry."

"Don't worry. Just forget about it."

"Okay."

"Uhm... Ayel?"

"What now?"

"Just wondering, why are you wearing a barong?"

"Why? It's allowed isn't it?"

"Yeah... But you're the only one wearing one except for the guards."

"So I look like a guard now?"

"No! It's just I usually see people wearing long sleeves."

"That's because I prefer comfort over fashion."

"I see. I just hear some people calling you congressman."

"I don't care. How can you be yourself if you're always thinking what others think about you?"

"I guess so." She smiled at me. "Perhaps one day I can do the same."

"You will."

As we approached the back of the building, I noticed a pod parked just outside. It was a green PZA-LYNX-03, the same Ford model as the one I saw at Steve's wake. It looked empty so I ignored it all as well. Soon we found ourselves at the back gate. PZX-R01s were busy unloading the trucks. A few hard hats turned around to look at us; after a few seconds, they went back to work. The guard at the entrance simply smiled at Janet. She had probably been using the detour for a while. After adjusting to the sudden dimness that replaced the intense glare outside, we moved toward the familiar sound of stud welders, jackhammers and concrete joint cutters. We were underground, staring vividly at the beauty of the _underworld_.

"So the back opens up directly to the hangar?" I asked.

"Yeah. How did you think they moved the cargo?"

"Alright. Makes sense."

The thought of visiting Ric popped in my mind, but seeing me with Janet would only provoke more gossip. Instead, we went straight toward the elevators.

"Ayel?" she said softly, her arms around mine.

"Yes?"

"Thanks."

"For what?"

"For not being a jerk."

"Since when was I?"

She chuckled. "Nevermind."

We began to laugh for no reason, but soon found ourselves staring at each other. Time stopped again. There were no words, no gestures. It was just me smiling at her, and she reciprocating the same expression. I took in every scent of her hair; her essence was intoxicating. Her eyes were my favorite, sort of like Korean but not too much; her pouty lips, just _irresistible_. But most profound was the feeling, the feeling that you know when you felt it. If only I could suspend the time-space continuum permanently, I would have. I turned around to face her. Holding her cheek, I dived in to land a kiss. As my arms grabbed her shoulders, my lips began to bury deeply into hers. I started to play with her hair. Soon our hands...

"Ayel!"

"Yes?"

"You've been staring at the window for the last 15 minutes since the meeting began."

And then the dream was over, just like that.

"Sorry, Elaine. Just tired, I guess."

"Okay. What do you think about the new process Robin is suggesting?"

"Ahh... What process?"

"The merging of the pointsheets?"

"Oh yeah, I think it's good. At least we'll be more uniformed."

"Okay. How about you Ryan?"

The meeting continued on. The project had lost a lot of clients in the past releases, and the teams eventually merged and got smaller and smaller until there was only one team left— _ours._ What was once a whole floor was reduced to a small group of cubes on a small corner. Hey, business is business, even if you have to lose a few resources along the way. That's what the guys on the higher-ups think; and to get the most of what they can from each resource, they introduced _cross-training_.

Now what is cross-training? Well, it would get a bit technical if I used all the jargons and the whatnots, so I'm going to explain it in the most layman's term possible. Imagine you're starting a business. Let's take a restaurant for example. Now you have the establishment and you have a cook, but you don't have the budget to hire cashiers, waiters and janitors yet. What do you do? It's simple right? _You_ do it. You become the cashier when someone pays, you deliver the orders when the food is ready, and you clean up the place after the customers are finished. For security, you can even hide a gun under your cashier table if you like. That's basically the concept. You do _everything_. No specialty, no mastery. It doesn't really matter as long as you can do any task at any time. That's how survival has evolved. It's like having an online avatar with no specific build. A blacksmith with intelligence, a wizard with strength, or any character with points distributed evenly among all stats. If you play something like _DOTA_ with those kinds of stats, your party members would most likely kick you from the group the moment they realize what a newbie you are. But here at Tantuco, that's pretty much the growing norm.

An hour later, the meeting became a debate about what format was easier, what template was better, and so on. It was the traditionalists Elaine and Yvonne on one side and the reformists Ryan and Robin on the other. The battle heated on. Soon the meeting became more like the _Council of Nicaea_ , where priests and pastors debated over much of what we believe in Christianity today, including the divinity of Jesus Christ. Janet looked confused at it all. I could barely hold my hilarity, really. A half hour later, the meeting was adjourned. As we went back to our respective seats, I noticed a line near the opposite end of the hallway.

"What's the blockbuster for?" I asked Ryan.

"I think it's a medical check-up or something."

"Or one of those flu shots," Robin added.

I never really liked flu shots, or any shots in the matter. Perhaps that's just one of the reasons why I didn't take up nursing. The needles, the blood, the dirty patients; it's just not my style. Plus the sight of someone dying in front of me; I just couldn't bear it anymore. Once you've seen death, once someone close dies in your arms, it'll never leave you; it'll never let you go. Some say it gets easier, especially if you don't know the person. But I guess I'm too soft. Programming is a lot better. Even if you mess something up, you can always fix it. Heck, a _CTRL+Z_ is just a split second away. Everything can be repackaged, recoded and re-fixed. But in real life, we only get one chance. In real life, there is no _undo_ button. Sometimes, I wish I could just undo my life to a certain _backup_ period where I could change something I did or didn't. We all have our regrets, our mistakes and faults, and if given a chance, I would go back there and fix everything up. How about you? Got any life _defects_ you want to fix?

Soon a message popped in.

janet_skokie: "Hey! "

masterAyel: "Hey, how are you? Hope you didn't get scared with all the ruckus back in the meeting."

janet_skokie: "Just a little. Anyway I heard they have free vaccinations over there till twelve midnight. Wanna go?"

You already know my stand on the issue, but this was different—this was a girl. I _had_ to be macho _._

masterAyel: "Sure! "

janet_skokie: "Yey! Thanks!"

masterAyel: "No problem. Just ping me up when you want to go."

janet_skokie: "Ok! "

Looking at Robin's monitor beside me, I realized you can check the news in the internet nowadays, or maybe I just didn't bother to check in the first place. I typed in the URL and searched for interesting articles. I found one that caught my attention. An anti-RH bill proponent stated that the floods in the Philippines are "punishment from God" because the president is in favor of the said bill. What the fuck, right? I mean, what the hell does the RH bill have anything to do with all that?

It just saddens me to say this, but the Filipinos are really stupid.

And the worst thing is they just have to include God into every problem that is clearly from the very beginning— _our_ fault. Squatters dumping their shit in the rivers, illegal loggers leaving the mountains barren, corrupt congressmen stalling drainage projects for higher kick-back; it's all us, really. The only involvement that God has something to do in any of our problems is the fact that he created the people who are causing all of it. If the world is going to end anytime soon, it's not God's fault, it's ours. I mean look at all the factors: Global Warming, nuclear threats, and overpopulation—everything is man-made. So next time we bring in God to the discussion, let's make sure we use the brain that he gave us, wisely.

The clock struck a quarter after nine. After a few hours of the daily routine, I found myself smiling.

janet_skokie: "Hi..."

masterAyel: "Hey there!  Who's _skokie_?"

janet_skokie: "Haha! I thought you'd never ask."

masterAyel: "Some sort of alias?"

janet_skokie: "No! That's my baby shitzu. "

masterAyel: "OIC..."

janet_skokie: "Do you have a pet?"

masterAyel: "Yeah... I have a cat I named Kulimlim."

janet_skokie: "Cool name! That's old Tagalog, right?"

masterAyel: "Yeah! Means a dark cloud/sky or growing nimbus, I guess."

janet_skokie: "So I guess Kulimlim is black?"

masterAyel: "Bingo!"

janet_skokie: "That's a cool name. I don't even know where I got 'skokie.'"

masterAyel: "Hahaha... That's ok. Not everything has to have a meaning. Look at my name."

janet_skokie: "haha.. Anyway, still busy?"

masterAyel: "Nope! Let's go?"

janet_skokie: "Sure! Just meet me by the line, ok?"

masterAyel: "Ok!"

I stood up as I started to pack my stuff; I saw her doing the same. Robin was still sitting beside me, wearing her usual headphones so loud that I could also sing to the chorus.

"Hey, aren't you going home yet?" I said, tapping her shoulder.

"What?"

"I said, 'aren't you going home yet?' It's already past nine."

"Uhh... Not really. Don't have anything to do at my house anyway."

No hobbies, no lovelife, no _barkada_. Robin was the perfect employee that wouldn't complain about anything. Poor girl. She's missing out on a lot in the world. But Robin wasn't always like this. There was a time when the two of us would go home together, but something happened along the way—she got _infected_ , infected by the virus that turns all people into workaholic robots _._ I looked around at the others—all droids.

"Suit yourself. Setting a _ghosting_ record?"

Robin didn't reply. She just nodded with a sarcastic look as she put her headphones back on.

As for the previously mentioned jargon: "Ghosting" means staying more than the specified working hours, in which the extra time you spent is off the record. You see, there was once a story where an employee went back to office because she forgot something. The lights were all off so she thought the place was empty. But soon she heard someone typing, though she couldn't see anyone. What did she do? She ran and reported a "ghost" to the guard. The guard went to check and found another employee still working in a hidden corner. Funny legend, eh? The term originally meant staying in the office without doing anything, but the term has also become synonymous to another more recognized slang—OTY, which is short for _overtime thank you_. Basically, it's considered unorthodox, but the company wouldn't mind something that actually benefits them. I mean, free work? Who wouldn't? They're strict about punctuality, but what about the _ghosts_ that lurk in the night? Isn't going home after rendering your full productive hours part of being _punctual?_

After taking a leak, I made my way to the clinic. Janet was at the end of the line. There were only three more ahead of her, so I was glad we wouldn't wait for long.

"What is this for again?" I asked, looking curiously at the formed silhouette behind the opaque glass door. You see, I had the hots for this one nurse. Her name was Gale. If she was the one giving me the shot, then I wouldn't mind if she treated me the whole day.

"The email said it's for flu and Hepa B."

"Okay..."

"You don't like shots?"

"Who me? Who doesn't?"

"Hmm... I guess so. But they're good for us you know. Just like everything else that hurts."

"Wow! That's deep," I teased her. "Looks like someone is still affected."

"What? Of course not. I'm just saying what doesn't kill you only makes you _wiser_ ," she said, winking at me.

"Alright, alright. You win."

"Good."

"Emo girl..." I muttered to myself.

"What did you say?"

"Oh, nothing."

She held her fists to her waist, narrowing her eyes towards me. "What did you say, Mr. del Rio?"

I don't know if she was trying to look scary, but she gave off the opposite effect. I couldn't resist pinching her nose.

"Hey! You know that won't grow anymore!"

"Oh, sorry, I thought it was a pimple."

"Hmp!"

I laughed as she turned around. "C'mon! I was just kidding."

"Hmp... Whatever."

I thought of letting out another joke when the glass door opened. The nurse aid began to count.

"One, two, three, four, five. Alright, please come inside."

Looking around, I found the room to be a typical office clinic: small, cold and smelled of sanitizing alcohol. Fluorescent tubes glowed dimly through the green-dented corners of the doctor's not so private quarters. Weighing scales, height measure charts and various clinical apparatuses decorated the interior. On the right corner where the window faced us was the physician, diligently interviewing his next victim. On the opposite side was the stock room where I could hear someone sorting out the boxes. After _Dracula_ got a few blood samples and injected his venom on the poor unfortunate souls, our turn finally came up. Janet sat on the other chair opposite to mine.

"Hello sir. Please sign here and place your ID in the box over there," the doctor said. "You too, miss."

After finding my surname in the 'R' section instead of the 'D,' I handed the list to Janet.

"Alright, let's start with you Mr... Ayel?"

"Yes?"

"Any fevers lately?" he said, browsing through his list.

"No."

"Do you get eight hours of sleep?"

"Uhh... Sort of."

"How about any disease history?"

"I had chicken pox when I was eight."

"Anything else?"

"Hmm... I also had asthma when I was a kid, but I got cured when I started swimming."

"How about migraines?" he added.

"Not really. Just sometimes when I stare at the monitor for too long."

"Short term memory lost?"

"What? No. I don't think so."

"I see. Looks like you're clean Mr. Ayel."

"That's great!"

"Yes. The nurse will be with you shortly," he said, moving his attention towards Janet. He basically asked her the same set of questions, though Janet seemed to be getting headaches that she didn't mention to me at all. Then I realized—why would she? We're not a couple or anything. We're just friends, very good friends. I sighed at the thought. It's just as it is. But everything was about to change. A chain reaction was about to be triggered at that exact moment in the time-space continuum, forever altering the future of mankind.

"Hi sir, please raise your sleeve," Gale said beside me.

"Hi Gale, how are you?" I replied, obediently following her instructions.

"Hey... How are you... Ayel?"

As I looked up, time stopped. The clouds gathered, covering the lunar splendor. A cry swept through the valley, taking all the first-borns. A shadow unveiled; a menacing serpent on its shoulder, hissing through the cold, dry air. It was the nightmare of nightmares, evil personified. No, it wasn't Gale. It was The Dark Lord herself—my ex.

"You look good, Ayel," she said, smiling.

I managed to smile back at best. It was all I _could_ do. "How you been?" she said, piercing the needle into my skin. "Did you change your number? I texted you."

"Uhh... I just don't text that much these days."

"Really? I guess you really didn't like texting back then anyway."

"Yeah."

"We should go out sometimes," she said softly, placing a piece of cotton on my shoulder.

"Sure... I guess."

What was I supposed to say? Was I supposed to ignore her? Act like there was no one there? Knowing the fact that _she_ was holding the needle?

"What floor are you?"

"The same floor," I stuttered.

"Great! Just pop me up sometime, okay? We have a lot of catching up to do."

"Okay..."

After the most shuddering vaccination in my whole life, time managed to move again. She was on Janet now, and Janet was staring at me. The whole time I forgot she was sitting just in front of me. She shot a look back, raising her left eye brow.

"Hey Ayel," Janet said, folding her arms.

"What?"

"Why don't you introduce me to your _friend_?"

## PHASE 10

## THIRD PARTY SOFTWARE

It was early morning when the devil popped in. How ironic. But then again, the devil, Lucifer, was originally the brightest angel there was before God threw him out of his kingdom.

yourAngel: "Goodmorning! Had breakfast yet?"

I looked at the time: It was nine in the morning. I managed to survive her flooding text messages the last night, with the _emo_ quotes and all, but then she just had to ruin the morning too.

masterAyel: "Hey..."

yourAngel: "Have you eaten yet?"

masterAyel: "Yeah, I did."

No I didn't. I knew her all too well.

yourAngel: "Oh ok... I have some fries here if you want. "

masterAyel: "K"

I always wanted to do that, replying using only the letter 'K _'_. I consider it a waste of load. But in chat, there's really nothing to lose.

yourAngel: ""

Thoughts came to me mind: _Why is she here? What is she doing here? What the hell does she want with me? Reconciliation? Does she want to get back with me? Is she that stupid?_

Women are really strange, if you think about it. But this was no ordinary woman. This was a succubus—a life sucking monster. My stomach began to growl on me. It was angry. After introducing the two girls last night, Janet went ahead and I just lost my appetite. I went home with an empty hand and an empty stomach. The growling continued. Good thing I always stored an emergency kit for times like this. I opened my bin and grabbed two packs of my favorite Hansel biscuit. I then went to the pantry for some tea. You see, I don't really drink coffee like the usual peeps. Why? I have three reasons: (1) I easily palpitate. (2) I have a hard time sleeping without caffeine already. Imagine what a few cups can do. (3) People who drink coffee are more prone to heart attacks than those who don't. Plus tea is a much healthier alternative. The only exception would be _Kapeng Barako_ from my aunt in Lipa, Batangas. The sweet blend mixed with homemade spaghetti is just a combo I can't resist. And with the rainy season coming up, I wouldn't mind taking a bus to the old place and ordering a big hot bowl of special _lomi with chicharon_ and _embutido,_ topped up with all the onion and fried garlic I want. Yuuuummy. All that thinking just made me hungrier. I dipped a sachet and poured hot water into the black mug. As I blew on the steam, a girl bumped me on the side.

"Oh! Excuse me!"

"Hey!" I managed, raising an eyebrow. "This is hot, you know."

"Hot your face!" Janet said. "So what's up with your _friend_?"

"What do you mean?"

"C'mon!" she said, stirring her cup relentlessly. "I was there. I heard you guys talking."

"So?"

"So are you going out again?"

"I didn't make any commitments, okay?"

"But she's your _ex_ right?"

What the hell right? I told you girls were psychic.

"Huh? I didn't tell you that."

"Duh! I'm not stupid, you know. You should have seen your face last night. You looked like you saw a ghost."

"Uh... Really?"

"Yeah..."

Some employees went by, having their own share of rumors and hearsays. A group started to flock on one table. The cleaning lady over the sink began her daily mug washing.

Before I could utter my next words, Janet beat me to it.

"Hey, Wanna go watch a movie later?"

"Sure. What movie?"

"I think they have Fifty Shades of Bourne on 9PM."

"Okay. That's good."

"Alright! See you later," she said, pinching me in the shoulder as her interrogative demeanor was replaced by her usual cheerful expression.

Back in my cube, Ryan popped me.

raYan021: "Hey man, is the new nurse really hot?"

masterAyel: "What?"

raYan021: "You sly dog. You should have told me yesterday."

masterAyel: "I didn't know. I was surprised myself."

raYan021: "Really? Did you get her name?"

masterAyel: "Uhh... Yeah..."

raYan021: "What is it?"

Before I could type it in, the boss popped up a chatroom.

"Guys! Holiday allowance. You know the drill."

"Yes boss!"

Yes, indeed. Holiday allowance: the only thing left to comfort us corporate peeps when forced to work on a planned day of RnR. Now how much exactly is a Holiday allowance? This is where the myth of the _Double Pay_ comes in. For example, if you earn 2K a day, you'll get 4K for going to work on a holiday right? That's basically the concept. Well, for those working on public offices, hospitals and banks, holiday pay _is_ equivalent to double pay. But for corporate peeps like us, it's basically a myth. The allowance doesn't even come near half of the base. I won't go into the details but let's just say it isn't really worth it. For some reason, Tantuco is above the law, above the office of the president, so there's really nothing we can do about it. So next time your friends or family taunts you for being rich because of holiday work, you'll know what to say. Oh, and let's not forget that there are no more _Muslim holidays_ since Mindanao separated.

After a while, a crowd began to gather on the other side of the cube.

"Wow! Boss is leveling-up!" Yvonne announced.

I stood up, curious to look.

"The new PZC-S3!" Ryan added as he held the device.

"Shhh... What's the big deal?" Elaine said.

"How much did you score for it?" Ryan asked, now playing with the holographic apps.

"About 750K."

"Wow... Nice," Yvonne said. "Now only Ayel needs a new phone!"

"Hey, hey!" I objected. "There's nothing wrong with my phone, you know."

"Yeah, yeah. There's just something wrong with _you_ ," Ryan joked.

"Really funny, Ryan," I said, sarcastically looking at him.

"C'mon, guys. Leave Ayel alone," Elaine said. "He'll buy when he wants to."

I sat down again and the crowd soon dispersed. Sometimes I think about what Ryan said. Was something _wrong_ with me? Do I have to submit to peer pressure to be considered _normal_ in the community? I mean, Ryan's PZC-Xperia just got snatched a month ago and he just bought a new PZC-Note last week. Robin on the other hand just buys new models, and then sells them for a cheaper price when she gets bored.

What the hell, right?

I mean, with all the money they're burning up with these gadgets, they could have already bought their own land and built their own houses for their future families. But I have no right to forbid them, the same way they have no right to force me to buy something I don't want. We all have our say in the money we earn. We have a right to spend it the way we see it fit. That's why I never questioned them. For me, if it's not your money, then shut up.

After a while, lunch came. I ate with Janet at the usual cafeteria. She kept on asking about my ex, though I managed to steer the conversation to another topic. We then walked around the mall, noticing every small detail we could come across. Moving up the escalator, we saw this nanny pushing a baby stroller. We moved toward the front to take a look at the baby but saw something else. Well I guess it was a baby—a baby _dog_. Apparently, the rich have deduced that raising dogs or cats is much cheaper than raising children. No, I'm not kidding. Just look at how few children the rich have. Usually, you'll meet a rich couple with three to one or sometimes even no children at all. These are the people who usually keep an assortment of dog and cat breeds, having a nanny for each. I can honestly understand them because pets don't leave you when they grow up. They don't get mad at you if you kiss them in front of their friends. They don't rebel. They don't stay late after school. If they get pregnant at a young age, it's alright. In fact, you'll be even happy, right? And if you give them your love, they'll give you theirs without expecting anything in return.

Now for some reason, the poor thinks otherwise. For some twisted logic, the poor still believes that having a lot of children will make them rich. And what do they do with dogs and cats? Some make them fight for gambling money. But the worse are those who eat them. Yes, beat the poor animals to death and stick them up like your regular fiesta _lechon_. As I mentioned before, Filipinos will use any occasion to have a few drinks, even at funerals. Well some will use _any_ animal if they don't have the money to buy a pig, just so they can keep their _pulutan_ supply going. I hate to reiterate myself, but it's just more fun in the Philippines, isn't it?

The clock struck eight. Janet had already went ahead to buy the tickets. I followed shortly after finishing my tasks. Washing up in the comfort room, I heard two men chatting, unaware they were not alone.

"Did you see the new nurse?" the first said.

"Yeah! She's hot, right? I could see her pink polka dot underwear in that thin white uniform," the other replied.

"Nice, eh? She's kinda cute and petite, but her boobs are huge!"

"Flawless skin too. Yummy. I could just rush in there and do her right in the clinic bed."

"Easy, man. Didn't know you had a nurse fetish."

The other laughed hard. "C'mon! Let's go there and ask for some _paracetamol._ "

"Alright! Let's go. You think she got a boyfriend?"

"Maybe. But someone who wears polka dot underwear with that uniform is obviously asking for attention."

The voices eventually faded. By then, I was already used to all of the maniacs and perverts. It had always been like that with _her._ Whenever we would go to a mall or a park, guys in the bathroom would never fail to mention how hot the girl in the dress was, or how the tricycle drivers stared at her, ripping her clothes off with all the imagination they could muster. I've grown immune to it all. At the ground floor, I saw a collection of various colors of long sleeves just outside the building entrance. The men, about five in my count, were concentrated around something that was in the corner. Looking closely, I saw the usual styrophor food vendor. Cheap and dirty food—your choice, right? As I moved forward to cross the pedestrian, I heard a familiar voice shouting out a familiar name— _mine_.

"Ayel!"

I turned around to look. As the group parted, it revealed a girl waiving her arms, signaling me to come closer. It wasn't the vendor they were hovering about, it was _her_.

"Hey!" I replied, moving closer to the curious mob.

_What did she want this time?_ I thought.

"Sorry guys, I have to go now," she said.

"What? C'mon, let's have a few drinks," the guy in red said. "It's our treat."

"Sorry, my _boyfriend_ is already here."

I should have been happy, really, but she wasn't pointing at anybody else. She was pointing at _me_.

"What?!!" I objected. But before I could mutter anything else, she grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the pedestrian lane, away from the hungry, horny mob. I could see their faces: like disappointed sales agents scratching their heads, eventually dispersing as their prey escapes.

"Shhh..." she whispered. "Just do me a favor, okay?"

"What are you doing?!!" I demanded.

"I was waiting for a cab when those guys just came out of nowhere," she replied, still dragging me. "I couldn't just jump in the taxi. One of them could just jump right in with me."

"And I was just lucky enough to pass by, right?"

"I guess so. They wouldn't even believe me when I told them I _have_ a boyfriend."

"Really? So where he is?" I said, turning around to look if anyone from the mob was following us.

"Don't look. Just keep walking."

"I asked you."

A few more people glanced at us. I knew this look all too well. I didn't need to be a telepath to know what they were thinking. _That lucky bastard_ , they all said.

"I don't," she said softly.

"What? What do you mean?"

I managed to pull her to a halt. We were just outside a Ministop stall.

"He never came for me! Okay?" she stuttered. "It was just Jill and me ever since you left us."

I pulled my arm away. "Jesus, we've been through this so many times. It wasn't my fault, it's yours."

Silence fell on her. Suddenly, it was history repeating itself all over again. She began to sob.

"Oh shit. Why are you crying now?"

"I'm sorry..." she stuttered. "I'm really sorry..."

"Shhh... Don't cry. Not here of all places."

The spectators began to take notice of us. It was all too familiar. As always, I looked like the jackass boyfriend making his girlfriend cry. Heck, I wasn't the one at fault. And I wasn't her boyfriend. Not anymore. To avoid further attention, I pulled her toward the darker corner of the store entrance. By then, her sobbing was joined by hiccups. This was going nowhere. I decided to just calm her down before calling a cab for her. I embraced her, patting her back.

"Shhh... It's alright now," I said softly. "I don't really think about it anymore. I moved on."

She was muttering inaudibly, her voice dry, filled by a couple of hiccups along the way.

"Shhh... Don't cry... Don't cry..."

After a while she managed to say a word."

"Ayel?"

"Yes?"

"I really missed you..."

I didn't know what to say. Maybe deep in my heart I did miss her. I mean, a four year relationship isn't really something you can forget that easily. But the pain I felt was all too strong. Maybe I did move on, but something inside me told me otherwise.

"I missed you too..."

She hugged me tight. I could smell her hair against my face. I took it in. The scent of her usual shampoo brought memories back. Way, way back. We stood still, the open air brushing up a gentle wind against us. She hugged me tighter. I closed my eyes. Thoughts running through my head were suddenly washed out. The bystanders no longer mattered. It was just me, her, and the cold starry, starry night. But as I was to find out, we weren't alone.

"Ayel?" an all too familiar voice surfaced.

As I opened my eyes, I saw her. She was just coming out of the convenience store, holding a pack of popcorn, hotdogs, and two large iced teas.

"Janet..."

## PHASE 11

## RECONNECTION

The stars continued to glimmer. I could see the _Kite_ bright as ever. Pods lined up overhead; their headlights streamed like travelling asteroids on a straight line. The amber full moon loomed behind the hovering clouds, stealing a glance on all unsuspecting lovers sitting on the benches. The trees danced softly to the smooth gentle breeze. I could hear faint music from the bar—"The Past _,"_ so it seemed. How coincidently appropriate. I sighed. _Life just had to be complicated,_ I said to myself. By then we were sitting on the _lover's_ area. An arm's length stood between us.

"Here," I said, handing her a bottle of water.

"Ayel..."

"Yes?"

"Was that your new girlfriend?"

She began to drink. I wanted to say yes, but it was complicated. Or maybe we just _didn't_ _want_ it to become complicated?

"I don't know."

"Not yet?"

With what happened, maybe not _ever._

"I don't know, okay?" I managed. "After what happened with you and me, I just didn't want anything serious anymore."

"I'm sorry... I can talk to her if you want."

"It doesn't matter. I don't really know what I want anymore."

"I'm sorry..."

"Enough apologies, okay?" I said without looking at her.

"How are you doing?"

"I'm good. I never really left Tantuco even after what happened." I said. "It felt good to earn for yourself."

"I see," she said softly, holding the bottle tight in her hands.

"How 'bout you?"

"I'm good. After you left, I had to work harder, you know, to get promoted," she answered. "I even began giving English lessons during Sundays."

"And how 'bout Jill?"

"She's fine. She's almost three now. She speaks a lot."

"That's good."

"She asks about you."

"What did you tell her?"

"Nothing."

"I see. So how about the father? Does he give support?"

"Nothing, just nothing."

"Did you ever tell him? Does he even know?"

She kept silent, staring blankly at the ground.

"Can I know who it is?" I added.

Still nothing. Still as hard as ever.

"Okay... So let's get to the most obvious question," I said, playing with my automatic umbrella. "What are you doing here?"

"It didn't work out in the hospital. The position they promised me eventually went to the owner's niece."

I sighed. Another thing I love about the Filipinos is their overwhelming devotion to family ties. It doesn't really matter if you're qualified for the job or not. If you're related or somehow connected through a family friend, you're in. If you're not, no matter how hard you worked, no matter how high your grades are, you still won't get the job.

"That sucks."

"I worked like a slave, barely going home just to see Jill. There was even a point when I volunteered to work on Sundays, seeing it as the edge over the other nurses. They had all these promises set out, but in the end, they were all lies."

"So you decided to work here?"

"Yes, Tantuco pays well. A lot of benefits too. Very useful for someone like me."

"But here you still won't have much time for Jill."

"I know. But at least it pays a lot better compared to provincial wages."

"So you left her back home?"

"Yeah... I couldn't bring her here. It's much safer back home with my mom."

"And how about your dad? Is he helping out?"

"You know how it is. He barely shows up. Probably has another family in Saudi."

I sighed again. Some people are just luckier than others. I looked around. A couple by our left was already making out. The music finally washed out.

"It's getting late," I started. "You should go home now."

"How 'bout you?"

"Don't worry 'bout me. C'mon, let's get you a cab."

"Okay..."

We walked side by side. Another couple passed by. The girl was wearing the latest fashion trend among women. The "Kulambo Blouse," I called it. It was very _transparent_.

"Are you seriously going home wearing that?"

"What?"

"That white uniform and the skirt, it's too thin."

"It's not. It's just white."

"But still."

And then I remembered; she was like this ever since.

"Here, put this on," I said, handing over my black jacket.

For I moment, I guess she also remembered. Finally, I managed to hail an empty cab.

"Okay... Thanks."

The pod began to decrease its altitude.

"Take care, alright?"

"Yes. See you tomorrow, I guess," she replied.

As the cab door began to open, she told the driver her destination. But before she went inside, she turned around and hugged me, stealing a kiss from my cheek. I was stunned. She went inside smiling, waiving her cute little hands. As the cab began to rise, I touched my face— _The Kiss of Judas, perhaps?_

Back at the pad, I found Kulimlim waiting at the mat as usual. I flipped on the lights and went straight to the table. I opened my take-out. I was _dead_ hungry. Kulimlim kept swirling down my legs.

"Wait just a minute, okay?" I handed her a few strips just to calm her down.

I ate faster than a dog. I opened a bottle of soya milk from the fridge as I placed Kulimlim's meal down on the floor. I looked at the clock, it was quarter to twelve. I decided to check my Facebook for a while. Opening my desktop, I checked the connection again. It was good. Maybe that one time was just a glitch. As I logged in, I noticed a friend invite:

Janet Vi Brittania would like to add you as friend.

Obviously an animé fan but I was still surprised. Maybe she _did_ want to add me. But things have changed. If only she could cancel her invitation, right? Or maybe she could. I thought for a while if I would accept. I wanted to talk to her but I sensed it wasn't the right time yet. Girls _need_ time. The fact that they are so pickle-minded just proves that. But I also thought that this was the perfect time to see her private account. Unlike boys who can ignore or suppress their emotions, girls always need some sort of "outlet" for their thoughts and feelings. If a friend is not available, they always have one last resort—their _wall._ I clicked _accept._ Scanning her profile, I learned she had already started drinking at a bar with some friends. A recently uploaded photo showed a guy clinging on to her with a bottle in one hand. This was all I needed to see.

"Nice," I said. "Really nice."

Kulimlim looked up, wondering why I was speaking to myself.

"Looks like she got a new friend, eh Kulimlim?" I said, stroking her soft black fur.

She answered with a soft meow.

"Maybe she really _is_ the Queen of Casuals."

Kulimlim stared at me for a while, then went back to bathing herself.

I read her latest post: " _Whatever happens, happens."_

I guess that was it. Did I just end something? Or was there nothing to end from the beginning? I sighed. As I was about to log off, a new update suddenly surfaced:

Janet Vi Britannia has changed her relationship status from "single" to "it's complicated."

Whoa... Now _that_ was something. Was that considered a step up or a step down? Or maybe it had nothing to do with me at all? Maybe she had another guy? _It couldn't be me,_ I thought. But the timing was all too perfect. I was just denying the obvious. _Stupid, stupid._ If only I ignored the snake's voice when I left the building, then none of this would've happened. I sighed again.

Things were getting too soft. I decided to browse the news feed for distractions. Scrolling around, I found the usual crap that people post: pictures of their meal, check-in notifications of their current location, annoying threads of the latest trending issue, _likes_ here and there, and a whole lot more photos and Instagram they can muster to upload. If cameras did steal someone's soul, then these people would have nothing left to bargain with. *Sigh* Even social interaction didn't escape evolution. "Social Networking"—that's what they call it these days. Almost everything in your life has to be photographed, tagged and posted. It's like a police databank were all the information regarding a certain suspect can be obtained: Their recent photos, hobbies, address, job, relatives—everything is a mouse click away. It actually makes the police department's job very easy.

More updates popped up. I decided to _Go Online_. You see, I always defaulted my chat to _Offline_. Wasn't really much of a chatter anyway. Browsing through the list, I saw one friend that was _always_ online.

Ayel del Rio: "Hey Ian!"

Cadence: "It's Cadence."

Ayel del Rio: "Whatever."

You see, Ian, or his aptly stated alias, _Cadence_ , has been a friend of mine since high school. He's a Filipino but he grew up in the States, though for some reason I never felt to ask, he and his family migrated here when I was about fifteen. We quickly became friends due to our similar interests in animé, comics and video gaming. I remember back then, we were one of the very few _otakus_ in our school. I was proud of it, really, but the term _otaku_ was originally considered a pejorative label for geeks and nerds who liked big-eyed girls.

Those were the hard years for us.

We would get bullied by bigger and older boys who preferred to play basketball and drive cars. There was even a time when people who attended cosplays were considered gay. Only a very select few appreciated what we were doing. But Ian and I never abandoned our passion, our calling. We continued to write and draw, even after high school, and even after college. We survived the most ruthless and dangerous jungle of all—peer pressure. We made it because we chose to be who we are instead of becoming what everybody else is. And now look at where we are: everybody wearing nerdy glasses, models digging the _smart_ guys (mostly because they're rich), animé inspired fashion, and cosplay conventions everywhere. I think we owe a lot to Alodia for changing the point of view of many about the concept of otakus and cosplaying. No longer will your friends taunt you for going to a convention; they would even ask to come along, am I right? All I can say is, _All hail the Cosplay Queen!_

Cadence: "So wazzup?"

Ayel del Rio: "Same old same old."

Cadence: "How's your job?"

Ayel del Rio: "So so..."

Cadence: "That's pretty boring."

Ayel del Rio: "Really? How about _your_ job?" I asked, scratching my head.

Cadence: "Really funny, Ayel."

That's one thing I forgot to mention about Ian. Although he survived the bullying and all, he didn't survive college. He flunked his first year in Multimedia Arts at St. Benilde. *Sigh* I really wanted that course, and Ian just spent all his time in a computer shop. Really smart. After that, he went back to the province and enrolled for an IT course. It was good, the half of the semester at least, and then he stopped again. Soon his father brought Ian with him back to the States where he thought his son would get a job easily. I mean, jobs in the States are paid _per hour_ , and there are tons of them if you're not picky. Ian, unfortunately, is _very_ picky. After two years of achieving nothing, he went back to the Philippines. But as he argued, Ian did not come back empty-handed.

He was now an atheist and a paranormal blogger. Nothing could have made his parents prouder.

*Sigh* He once got a job at a low tier call center. I told him he was very lucky because of his natural accent and the fact that he got accepted despite not finishing a single year in college. I was proud of him of course, even telling my parents and relatives abroad how my friend has finally gotten his career going. We had a lot of plans too, you know: one was to establish an internet shop/bar where we would hold DOTA and Tekken tournaments. Another was to gain the funds to form the multi-media service team that we always dreamed of.

I was proud of Ian all the way—all _three_ weeks of it.

I clapped my hands. He didn't even reach a month. He didn't even wait for the salary! Jeez... When I met up with him to ask him what happened, he gave a lot of complaints: I didn't like the boss, I didn't like the people, it's so unprofessional there, the pay is too low, blah blah blah. The list just goes on. That was it. That was my breaking point. I lost all hope in him. I mean, I told him if he could have just stayed for a year or at least six months, then he might had a chance at the bigger call centers for a higher salary. But he didn't compromise, he didn't endure.

Despite his so many given talents, Ian has left me the impression that he is only good at one thing and one thing only: _complaining._ That's his problem. He barely has the credentials to ask for a higher salary, let alone get a decent job, but he still keeps on demanding on what he wants. And if he doesn't get it, it's simple—he _quits_. There was a time when I talked to him, that he should learn to endure for the final outcome. But he didn't listen. Ian wants to be the boss on his very first day of work, which is quite simply... _impossible_ , unless of course you're a Chinese with a family business.

Ayel del Rio: "Then what are you doing about it?"

Cadence: "I sent a resumé."

Ayel del Rio: "Did you follow-up?"

Cadence: "Nope. Didn't even like the company in the first place."

Ayel del Rio: "Okay," was all I could say.

Cadence: "I've been doing some digging."

Ayel del Rio: "What now?"

Cadence: "You remember the missing secretary back in 2012?"

Ayel del Rio: "What? Jesse Robredo? He was found dead with the wreckage."

Cadence: "Well, what if it was the same case with Magsaysay and Ninoy?"

Ayel del Rio: "What the hell?" I scratched my head again. "Do you seriously believe that conspiracy?"

Cadence: "Of course! I mean, what else could it have been?"

Ayel del Rio: "Okay. Assuming I believe you for just a second, why Ninoy? Why Magsaysay? Why the secretary? They were all _good_ people."

Cadence: "I don't know. Maybe the aliens are targeting these good people. Sounds better, eh?"

Ayel del Rio: "Because these good men found out and will expose them?" I went along.

Cadence: "Yeah! That's perfect!" I could feel his excitement building up. "You'll make a fine paranormal blogger, Ayel!"

Ayel del Rio: "No thanks. Not really in my to-do list."

Cadence: "Anyway, I'll write it down. Check my site later."

It was always like this with Ian— _hopeless._

Ayel del Rio: "Alright, I'll be logging off now."

Cadence: "Sure, sure."

I turned off my desktop and stood to change my clothes. Looking out the window, I saw the usual lights of floating billboards, holograms and the traffic of everyday pods. Suddenly, a noise began to build up from below. I looked down and saw a tricycle driver arguing with another who was as drunk as he was. _Another ruckus,_ I thought. _Just about when I was going to sleep._ _Perfect timing._

Perhaps if I was new in the area, I would already be calling the police. But now I'm pretty much immune. The noises outside no longer mattered if they came from dogs, cats or drunkards. They were all pretty much the same. I watched in amusement as one group tried to restrain the first guy, while the other guy was holding a piece of metal scrap, waiving it around and cursing till his lungs dried up. I loved this show. I began to yawn as my eyes steered away from the commotion. But before I could turn my head away, I saw something that I wish I didn't. Parked alongside the fishball cart, right in front of the sari-sari store was a green PZA-LYNX-O3, and right beside it—a man wearing a black leather duckbill hat.

## PHASE 12

## LOGICAL BREAK

"What the hell?" I shuddered. "It's that strange guy from the wake."

I took a step back, reassuring myself that it was all just a coincidence.

"Perhaps he lived here?" I continued. "But I've never seen him before."

Looking closer, I realized that someone like him would easily stand out in the neighborhood. You see, there weren't really a lot of people with pods in the area, plus he gave off that gangster-like swagger: ruthless but sophisticated, the type you wouldn't want to mess with. I began to notice his features which I couldn't make out before: average build, moreno complexion, a grown mustache—the usual tall, dark and handsome Filipino archetype, except this one was a bit older, about in his mid forties by my guess. The Godfather, I imagined. He began to approach the store, walking smoothly with one hand on his pocket. The bystanders stared at him, intimidated by this lone wolf entering their territory. He ignored them altogether, though his mere presence was enough to keep them at bay. After a while, he simply faded into the shadows, and the crowd went back to watching the ensuing ruckus. At the sari-sari store, Manong Jimmy handed him a pack of cigarettes. _Godfather_ started to make small talk as he lighted up a stick.

_What could he be asking him?_ I pondered.

Manong Jimmy was waiving his hand like crazy, probably telling him one of his usual _tambay_ stories. Kulimlim purred, crawling below me. I picked her up, stroking her shiny coat.

"What do you think _Godfather_ is doing here?" I asked her. She stared outside, as if she actually understood a word I was saying. My nervousness began to fade.

"Maybe he's just looking for a new place," I reassured myself. "Yeah. That's probably it."

But for some reason, I felt something—something _wrong_. His car, his jacket, his hat—it's just all wrong. As I was about to drop Kulimlim back to the floor, two things happened simultaneously: First was someone knocked on the door. The second was Manong Jimmy suddenly pointing his hand straight at my window where I stood. The man turned his head to glance. At that exact moment, he shot a look at me straight in the eye.

"What the fuck?" I turned to hide, squeezing Kulimlim in my arms. "Who is this guy?"

Kulimlim began to protest, running out of breath. The knocking continued. I dropped her as I carefully took a peak at the window. The man was gone. I should have been glad, really, but his pod was still there. I moved to the couch, taking out the Beretta. I thought first if I would answer or not, but then I heard a familiar voice behind the door.

"Ayel! It's me, Ric!"

I peeked through the door scope—it _was_ Ric. I opened the door and found him with a box of Pizza Hut in one hand and a plastic of San Mig bottles in the other.

"Special delivery!"

"What the hell is this?" I said, pulling him inside.

"Woah! Easy, man."

"Did you see some strange people come up with you?"

He placed the supplies in the table. "Nope. Why what's—"

Suddenly he stopped, staring at me. After a second I realized he was looking at the gun in my hand.

"Is that real, man?"

"Shhhh!" I placed a finger on my lips.

"Whoa! Is it _that_ dangerous here?"

"Did you see anyone suspicious?"

"What the fuck, man?" Ric cursed, still staring at the weapon. "Put the gun down first!"

I slammed the door, fastening the dead bolt.

"Anyone?" I continued, moving back towards the window. "Did anyone come up with you?"

"No—I don't think so," he replied, confused as I was. "What the hell's going on, Ayel?"

I ignored him as I peered over the ledge. The skirmish subsided; the people returned to their personal affairs. Manong Jimmy went outside and began closing up the store. My eyes steered toward the side of the street, searching for any traces of the man. As I held the Beretta tight with both hands, I took in a long deep breath. The green LYNX, as well as the man with the duckbill hat, was nowhere to be seen.

"Whew!" I released.

"What is it?" Ric asked, moving beside me. "What are you looking at?"

"Nothing. Maybe I'm just being paranoid."

"Wow, man." He rolled his eyes. "This place is really getting to you."

"I don't know," I muttered, scratching my head with the armed hand. "Do you remember that guy we saw at Steve's wake?"

"Okay, first, stop waiving that gun in your hand."

"Oh sorry, I forgot," I explained, returning the weapon to its fairly hidden location. "Don't worry, the safety's on."

"Didn't know you had a gun. Do you have a license for that?"

"Yeah, sure, sure," I said as I tucked it in carefully. "So do you remember?"

"What guy? The barangay captain?"

"No, no. The guy parked right in front of yours before we left. Don't you remember?"

"Hmm... I kinda remember it was a green lynx, but I don't recall seeing anybody else."

"It's just weird, really."

"What's weird is that you have a gun," Ric mocked as we sat on the couch.

"I'm not kidding. This morning I just saw that same exact pod parked just outside the office."

"So maybe he works at Tantuco too?"

Ric began to open the pizza box and pop the bottles.

"I saw the guy, dude. He isn't really _corporate_ material if you ask me."

"So you saw his car three times. No big deal, man."

"But he was looking straight at us at the wake. And now he just looked straight at my window."

"He could just be anybody looking for a place to rent."

"But..."

"No buts. I came here to celebrate, and that's what I'm gonna do."

"What? Celebrate what?"

Ric raised an eyebrow. "You were never really good with dates," he said, handing me a bottle. "It's my birthday."

"Oh... Happy birthday!"

He laughed. "There you go. Now how about a toast?"

I was never really good with remembering dates or special occasions. It was something my ex really hated about me.

"Sure! Uhh... To work, to life and everything else in between. Happy birthday, man."

"Kampai!"

"Kampai!"

Somehow, my anxiety finally subsided. Maybe I _was_ getting a bit carried away. Too much conspiracy movies were getting into my head.

"So are we all good now?" Ric said sarcastically, steering up the bottle in his hand "I don't want you pulling that gun anytime soon now."

"Yeah, yeah. Maybe Manong Jimmy was just pointing at the available rooms in my floor. In fact, the tenant next door just recently left. Maybe he was aiming to point at _that_ room and pointed at mine by mistake. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Maybe that was it."

"That makes perfect sense." He began to slice up the pizza. "Here."

"Thanks. Burger and cheese?"

"Yep! Our favorite."

I squeezed a sachet of hot sauce and poured it all on a single slice.

"Mmm... Brings back the old days, doesn't it?"

"Yeah. Nothing like the old days."

You see, Ric wasn't just my friend in college. He was also my dorm mate. We used to order pizza on rainy days, just playing with the old two-player beat-em-ups. When we started working, we kind of grew apart, though eventually, we managed to catch up again. Since then, he always went to my place to celebrate his birthday at the stroke of midnight. Sort of became a tradition too.

"Those were the best, eh? " I said, taking more than half a slice with a single bite. "Beats today anytime."

"Yeah. No overtimes, no holiday work, no weekend work. Plus you get the money with no effort at all."

"Yeah. College was the best."

"And of course, there were more chicks back then," Ric added.

"Here we go again, you horndog."

He started to chuckle. "C'mon, man. HRM, tourism, ABcom. Don't tell me you don't remember."

"Of course I remember. That's the reason why we chose _irregular_ schedules."

"Now that's the old Ayel I know. I remember this one class, I think it was English lit or something like that."

"I know this one! It was back in third year, we took the ABcom schedule," I said. "The class was filled with chicks."

"Yeah. But your attention was always on the prof."

"C'mon. You gotta admit she was really hot."

"Boom! Now we're talking baby!" Ric said as he waived the bottle around.

"Remember how we used to bet if she was wearing any bra?"

"Yeah, she was really a _fashionista_ ," Ric added. "That tight belt over her tummy just made her blouse squeeze out her boobs."

"Yummy."

Yummy indeed. It was the best class of my memory of college. You see, there weren't really a lot of chicks to expect from IT and engineering courses. If there were, they were mostly likely taken or too busy studying. On the other hand, other courses like ABcom were filled with cuties, pretties and hotties. Now you probably think we're horny maniacs, right? But as dirty as our purpose may seem, it was actually a win-win situation for both sides. The boys from mostly male-populated departments were finally able to mingle with chicks, while the chicks themselves were finally able to mingle with _real_ boys _._ That's because there were barely any men in their course. If there were, they were mostly _gay_. Only a few were authentic. So you see, we actually did them a favor. Everybody went home smiling.

"I see your place hasn't really changed in the last couple of months," Ric said.

"Why?"

"Nothing. I just don't get it why you choose to live in this crappy apartment, in this crappy neighborhood."

"Well, it just doesn't feel right to spend such a fortune when all I need is just a place to sleep."

"Yeah. But still you can afford something better, and yet you put up with this place," he insisted. "I mean, you're not supporting anyone anymore. You can buy anything you want."

"I do. I buy collectibles and stuff. But as for smart phones and all the fancy stuff, I just don't see the need," I defended. " _Especially_ if the reason for buying is just to keep up with the latest trend. So impractical."

"You're really something, man."

Ric was always like that, pushing me to buy a new phone, a new TV, a car. But I always held my ground.

"Okay. Let's change the topic. So how's Janet?" Ric asked, popping another bottle open. "I saw her new update."

"You're already her friend?"

"Yeah, I looked her up. Apparently, she's got a lot of friends from my team."

"So what about her?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.

"I know you two have been going out, you know."

"Really... Who told you?"

"Duh! Haven't you added her already? You should see her wall."

"Why? What did she post?"

"Janet is eating at blahblah with Ayel. Janet is watching blahblah with Ayel. The list goes on, man."

"I didn't see that. Just her latest post."

"So what happened? Did you guys fight or something?"

"No. Maybe. I don't know." I took another bottle out.

"Why? What happened?"

"We were supposed to watch a movie," I explained, taking another sip. "But then the devil decided to show up."

"What? Your _ex_?"

"Yeah... Apparently she's the new clinic nurse."

"So that's who the guys in the hangar were talking about," he said, putting his hand under his chin. "Fits the description perfectly."

"I know."

"Okay. Go on now. What happened?"

"Well, I just got caught up with a conversation with her..."

"And...?"

"I guess I got carried away when I hugged her."

"And Janet just happened to be at that exact place, am I right?"

"Yeah..."

Ric raised the bottom of the bottle high, drinking till the last drop. "Your life is really like a movie, you know."

"I know, right?"

"So what now?"

"What do you mean _what now_?"

"You gotta fix it up with her," Ric insisted, pointing the empty bottle at my face. "You know what you have to do."

"There's nothing to do." I tugged the bottle aside, away from my face. "There is no _us_."

"Are you serious? I think I've never seen you this happy with a girl before."

"What do you mean?" I took another slice.

"You barely go down the hangar anymore, and you don't really share anymore _stories_ with me."

"So look who's jealous," I kidded him.

"I'm just saying, man. I know you. You only talk to someone if you know they can relate to you."

Ric was right. The fact that I don't talk to him that much means that someone has filled up that place. Somehow, being with Janet was enough for me. She was always there, listening to all the insane ideas and insights that popped up in my head. Somehow, I began to miss her.

"Maybe... I guess."

"Wow, so the enigmatic Ayel has finally met his match?" Ric said with a smirk on his face.

I laughed at his remark. "If you put it that way, then yes. I guess I'm really happy with her."

"Then that's good. You should fix up with her tomorrow morning. I'll help you out, don't worry."

"I guess you're right."

"Yeah. And don't worry about the bitch. I'll take care of her."

"Hiring an assassin?"

"Something like that."

We laughed hard. Ric always did hate her.

"Anyway, thanks a lot, Ric."

"Now don't get mushy with me. We still have two bottles left!"

We toasted to the last round and sang like crazy. "Kampai!"

## PHASE 13

## BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLAN

"Your ID, sir," the guard demanded, waiving his magic wand as if he had any wizard blood in him. Poor muggle.

"Yes, yes," I replied.

Striding along the lobby, I noticed all the guards staring at me. Even the guys at the elevator didn't fail to take a glance. Was this all about the new nurse? Was I the new envy of town? Suddenly, it was college all over again. At my cube, I noticed Ryan standing, winking at me with a thumbs-up. "Nice moves, Ayel."

"What now?" I said, dropping my bag. A plastic with some take-out lay on my desk. "Whose food is this?"

"Look down," Ryan said.

I didn't notice it before but a _Post-it_ was hanging right in the middle of my screen.

"Good morning! I brought you your favorite. Hope you like it! Mwuuaahh! <3"

It was _her_ again. I pulled out the note and searched for the contents of the plastic. It was _longganisa_ and egg, my favorite indeed.

"You're the man, Ayel!" Ryan continued to make a ruckus.

"Shhh! Will you calm down already," I said as I sat down to feast on my free meal.

"I mean, the nurse? Did you _do_ her last night?"

"Of course not!"

"Really? The guys at the hangar say they saw you leave with her last night."

"It's not like that."

"Well, let's just see when Janet comes in."

And then it hit me. I almost forgot about her again. I still had a little hangover but it was nothing a few mugs of water can't fix. My conversation with Ric was slowly coming back to me. I _had_ to talk to her. After a few minutes, the opportunity arose.

"Hey Ayel!" Janet said, patting me on the shoulder.

"Hey..."

"Wow longganisa!" She bent over my shoulder. "Smells good!"

"Uhh... Want some?"

"Yeah! Cut me a small slice."

"Here," I said, lifting up a small piece for her to swallow.

"Ehem!" Ryan cleared his throat, _intentionally._

"Do you need water with that?" I joked.

He giggled. "Don't mind me."

"Tastes good!"Janet said, munching her way as she sat on my desk. "Hey, what's this?"

Oh fuck, I said to myself. Why didn't I crumple the note when I had the chance? Among all the worthless notes laying around on my cube, why did she had to notice _that_ one?

"Uhh... Janet?"

She stared at it for a while, and then managed to blink.

"Wow! Nice one, Ayel!" she said, pinching my shoulder with such ferocity.

"Hey, that hurts."

"So you're back with her now?"

"Huh? No." I managed. "Uh look Janet, about last night."

"Don't worry about it," she said. "So it's true? You guys are back together now?"

"No, we're not."

"Really? C'mon now. You can tell me all about it later, okay?"

"Whatever."

"Alright! Later then!" she said, smiling as she proceeded to her cube.

That was weird, weird indeed. It's like nothing happened the night before. Janet was so hard to read, as if she was always wearing a mask, a poker face. Her emotions never really seemed to rise to the surface, buried deep under her smooth fair skin. Perhaps this was a good thing. _At least I wouldn't find it hard to talk to her_ , I thought. The plan was set. It was all good.

After a few hours, lunch came but Janet was nowhere in sight. I decided to continue working since my earlier meal was able keep my hunger at bay. Suddenly, a message popped in:

yourAngel: "Hey Ayel! "

masterAyel: "Hey! Thanks for the free meal. "

yourAngel: "Did you like it? I remember it was your favorite."

For some reason, the thought placed a smile on my face.

masterAyel: "Yes, I liked it. Thanks again."

yourAngel: "I'm glad to hear that! I cooked that, you know."

masterAyel: "Oh... That's why it was so delicious."

yourAngel: "Really? I can cook for you everyday if you like?"

masterAyel: "Uhh you don't need to. Thanks for the offer though."

yourAngel: "Your welcome! Have you had lunch yet?"

masterAyel: "No, my break is on 1PM."

yourAngel: "Oh ok. Eat well ok?"

masterAyel: "Sure. How 'bout you?"

yourAngel: "I'm still good."

masterAyel: ""

yourAngel: "Uhm... Ayel?"

masterAyel: "Yes?"

yourAngel: "Nothing... "

It took me a while to realize that I was beginning to flirt with her. The food must have been poisoned. I decided if I was to start anything with Janet, I had to end _everything_ I had with my ex.

masterAyel: "Hey... Can we talk later?"

yourAngel: "Sure? Where?"

masterAyel: "On the 69th floor. There's a balcony there."

yourAngel: "Sure. That would be nice."

masterAyel: "Ok. 7PM good for you?"

yourAngel: "Yeah no problem."

masterAyel: "Ok, see you later."

yourAngel: "See you. "

The plan was good. The plan was good. Tell her that everything was over between us, and then proceed with Janet. It was as easy as that.

Hours passed and the clock struck a quarter before six.

"Thank God it's Friday!" Ryan said, raising his arms up high. I stood up and approached the window. The clouds seemed to gather; a nimbus loomed in from the horizon. Thunder rolled weak from the long distance, like a bass pounding from the stage, heard all the way down from the parking lot. A sudden flash of light darted downward, vanishing as quickly as it appeared. A much louder rumble followed, striking chills down my spine.

"There's a storm coming," Robin said, still facing her monitor.

"Really?" I turned back to my seat. "We just had one last month."

"There's a storm coming. You should know, Ayel," she continued, as if she was talking to someone on her headset instead of me.

"You know we're not affected by that."

"But the question is..." she turned, suddenly staring straight at me. "...are you ready for it?"

"Yeah! Bring it on!" I answered back. "You know how _dedicated_ we Tantuco employees are."

She turned back to face her computer; a grin hung from her face. Robin spoke very seldom, but we knew that we shared this sarcastic point of view of the world. People usually notice that we don't speak that much despite being the only two on our lane, but what they don't know is we share a bond, a _telepathic_ bond. As I turned on my monitor, I decided to check the news about the storm. " _Bagyong Paraluman_ ," the website said. They must be running out of names by now, or the new guy who gets to name the storms just happens to be a fan. But storm or not, we go to work. Like I said before, Tantuco is _above_ the law.

Soon another message popped in.

metalbird2000: "Yo Ayel!"

masterAyel: "Hey Ric. How's the birthday boy?"

metalbird2000: "All is good. Head still hurts a little but all is good."

masterAyel: "Good. Having a party later?"

metalbird2000: "Yeah. Me and some of the guys from _Production_ are going out. Wanna come?"

masterAyel: "Yeah sure, I'll follow. Just text me."

metalbird2000: "Alright! So how about Janet? Everything going smoothly?"

masterAyel: "Uhh... I'm still working on that."

metalbird2000: "What? You _had_ the whole day you know."

masterAyel: "I just need to fix everything up with my ex before anything else."

metalbird2000: "Oh... I see."

masterAyel: "I'm meeting up with her in a while."

metalbird2000: "Where?"

masterAyel: "Up on the balcony on 69th"

metalbird2000: "Ok."

The clock struck half an hour after six. It was time.

masterAyel: "See you later then?"

metalbird2000:: "Hey Ayel! Wait!"

masterAyel: "What now?"

metalbird2000: "Tell me more about you and Janet."

masterAyel: "I don't have time, Ric. We can talk later."

metalbird2000: "But—" I locked my desktop before he could finish. I began to pack my stuff.

"Ayel, have you updated the testing database?" Elaine said.

"Yes boss!"

"Have a date?" Ryan asked.

"I have a _life_ ," I answered back. "Do you?"

He just chuckled. "Tell me about it later, okay?"

"Yeah... Sure, sure."

I just hate it when that happens. People just seem to bug you when you're rushing with an appointment. Ryan persisted to ask more questions which I continued to ignore. I ran along the hallway toward the elevators. I could see the last one on the corner was still open, but as I rushed to get to it, the guy inside pressed closed. I hate that too. I hate anything that would cause me delay when I'm rushing. Finally, the one on the far right opened. I went in; there were seven of us inside.

I pushed 69th. Another pushed 61st, then 65th and lastly 68th. _What is it with these people?_ I asked myself. I looked at my watch: A quarter before seven. For some reason, I was restless and uneasy. And then I realized I was actually excited—excited to see _her_. After a few minutes, the door to heaven opened. Or was it hell?

I moved along past the glass door, past the lobby area, and into the pantry. I entered a large area where it seemed they also held seminars. The lights were out though; the room was so dark that the only light came from the glass balcony door across the entrance. My eyes began to adjust to the darkness. The pantry was technically part of the same room, which was just separated by a long solid sink table on the right side. I moved closer to the balcony door just beside it. As I took a peek, I could see her clearly about ten steps from me. She was hugging herself; the cold night breeze blowing her hair sidewards. She wore her usual nursing skirt attire with my black jacket over it. She didn't seem to notice me, staring blankly at the stars; the crackling storm faded towards the far, lingering horizon.

This was it. It was now or never. As I held the glass door handle to open it, something happened—something _nobody_ would ever expect. Out of nowhere, a man, presumably a guard based on his _barong_ and body-builder build, suddenly approached her from behind and grabbed her. She struggled with all her strength, but the guard had a weapon, a very _old_ weapon— _Chloroform._

_What the fuck?_ I muttered. But I had no weapon, I had no choice. All I could do was watch carefully and wait for the next step. After a round of helpless biting, scratching and kicking, she finally succumbed to the rag and fell unconscious. The giant simply tossed her petite body over his broad shoulder, just like a hunter carrying his next meal.

Shit! He's coming! He's coming.

Panic came over me. I looked around; the only hiding spot I could see was over the pantry, behind the sink table. I jumped over and anxiously hid under the shadows, hoping the kidnapper won't be too thirsty to stop for a drink. The glass door soon began to open; the guard's heavy footstep echoed through the large empty room. My hands trembled; my heart pounded like a bass drum, with every beat getting faster by the second. More footsteps followed. The moment was so intense, so _frantic,_ that I had to cover my mouth to keep him from hearing my breath. A few more seconds and I managed to hold on long enough for the steps to eventually fade out into the distance. As I raised my head to take a peak, I learned the kidnapper had taken her towards the opposite end of the lobby.

_What the fuck is he doing? Is he going to rape her?_ A guard/serial rapist would easily make the headlines, but where was he taking her? With the high rate of rape in our country, I wouldn't be surprised if this was the case.

I thought of calling the police, but I didn't even _have_ the number or the load for it.

_I could go down and ask for help,_ I thought. _But it would take too long. I would probably be too late._

Images began to pop up in my head. It was all too horrible. I imagined her clothes stripped from her, her body lying naked on the floor. I could see the pervert pounding on her as he licked his dirty tongue all over her lips, her neck, down to her breasts; all the while she was asleep.

_Oh fuck,_ I cursed. Fuck indeed. It was the only thing waiting for her.

But no matter how much I hated her, no matter how much I just wanted to close my eyes and forget what I saw, I still had a feeling deep inside me that I had to help her. I had to do what was right. As I stood up, my knees began to tremble, as if I had been sitting for three hours straight. I managed to move along, dragging myself towards the door. I looked around; the hallway was empty. Towards the right was the lobby—empty as well. I proceeded to the left where _Bowser_ had taken my _princess_.

_If I act normal, then the guard wouldn't suspect I saw them,_ I said to myself. My best weapon this time was ignorance, _feigned_ ignorance. As I approached the end of the hallway, I noticed three doors across each other: Two on the right and one on the left. The first two were simple—comfort rooms. The one on the left though was something I was never really aware of.

"The doctor is out," it said on the door sign.

_I never knew there was a clinic here,_ I thought. _Perhaps it's specific for this floor or a certain project._

It was weird, really. But I had no time to wonder about unknown clinics; I had a girl to save. If I were to be caught, the excuse was simple—I had a headache.

I twisted the knob; it wasn't locked. I pushed the door slightly, enough for me to take a peek. The clinic was bright and smelled of the usual sanitizing alcohol. As I continued to open the door, I realized the room was everything a clinic should be, except that it was empty. I closed the door behind me.

_Where the hell did they go? The comfort room perhaps?_ I decided to check it out when I heard a sudden noise, sort of like a low rumbling of some machine, similar to a CPU when starting up. I turned around to look, and then I realized something was going on behind the curtains where the clinic bed was. The sound grew louder, accompanied by a high pitch of some sort of signal—a signal that the machine was ON and ready.

I took in a deep breath, rushing towards the eerie sound. My worry overcame my fear. I was no longer afraid of anything coming out of those curtains. The only thing on my mind was getting her safe. As I pulled the curtain aside, I was shocked, shuddered by what was in front of me. It was something weird, something strange; something that I didn't expect at all.

Right in front of me was my ex strapped on the bed, though the kidnapper was nowhere around. But that wasn't the thing that bothered me the most. No, no, no. It was the facial steamer on her head, or at least it looked like one. I realized it was the source of the strange noise I'd been hearing, emitting a cold blue light, pulsating with the rhythm of a slow, steady heartbeat.

_What the hell is this?_ I thought. Looking around the area, I spotted a small contraption connected to the machine. It had a small monitor screen displaying her heartbeat, similar to those you see in movies where people are just about to die. Her heartbeat was normal though, but then I noticed a peculiar thing on the upper right corner of the screen. It wasn't her BP because that was displayed on the lower right. As I looked closer, I realized the numeral was decreasing; it wasn't a monitoring value—it was a _countdown_.

The digit hit ten, then nine, then eight; I had no idea what would happen if it reached zero, but I wasn't there to find out. I began to pull the strange mechanism from her head, lifting it away and throwing it on the floor across the bed. It was a good thing too, since the cable connecting the headpiece and the monitoring device was severed, halting the machine and the countdown altogether. I turned back to my ex as I removed the straps from her wrist and legs. Unfortunately, she was still unconscious. But fortunately for me, I've been waiting for this my whole life. I just needed the perfect excuse to do it.

I placed my hand behind her head, lifting her up. I looked at her face—still so beautiful, despite her hair covering half of it. Her lips lured me in, and after a while, I was able to gather the strength to finally do it—I raised my hand and slapped her hard on the face. No effect. She was still asleep. I slapped her again, and again and again. Nothing. Her cheek grew red with a mark of my hand. No use. But I continued with a grin. I laid her down again and found a mug by the table. I poured in some cold water from the dispenser, raised her head, and splashed the water on her face. So far, it did the trick.

"What—" she breathed out.

"Are you alright?"

"What—Ayel? Why did you take me here?" she asked, still a little groggy. Her eyes wondered around. "You should have just told me if you wanted to—"

"Hey, hold on now. It wasn't me," I said as I wiped her face with my napkin. "It was the guard."

"But why?"

"I don't know. Anyway, we should talk later."

"My head hurts."

"We have to get out of here now."

"Why?"

"Just listen to me, okay?" I insisted. "I'll carry you."

She held my wrist firmly.

"It's alright, I can walk," she managed. She got off the bed, stood up, then suddenly dropped to my shoulders like a drunken colleague.

"Hey, are you alright?"

"Yeah... Sorry, just a little dizzy."

"Hold on to the bed for a second," I said, going back to the dispenser. "Here, drink this."

She drank heavily, as if she walked a day on the Sahara.

"Want more?"

"Yes, please."

She drank another round and then wiped her lips.

"Can you move now?"

"Yeah, let's go."

I grabbed her wrist as we moved toward the door. I opened it slightly, scanning the hallway for any guards—it was clear.

"Alright. This is the plan." I turned back to her. "We go through the hallway, straight to the elevators. Once we reach the hangar, we go through the back entrance and head straight towards the mall. Okay?"

"Okay..."

"The most important thing is we act _normal_ ," I continued. "And if somebody tries to call you or delay you, just say we're rushing, alright?"

"Like we have a movie to catch?"

"Yeah. Something like that."

Suddenly, I was reminded of the reason why I met up with her in the first place. It was all for Janet. I was supposed to end it all and begin anew. But as I've learned through the past twenty-four years of my life, things never really turn out as we planned. When we want something, we plan and plan on how to get there, only to realize we want something else when we actually reach it. That's just how life is—an endless pursuit of happiness where the only thing constant is _money_.

Yes, money. I hate to admit it, but money _does_ make the world go round, forward, backward, sideways, heck, anywhere you want to go. Money is simply everywhere: in our house, our work, the mall, the school, the market, and even the Church. We need it, we want it; it gives us food, shelter and clothing. It's in everyone and everything. We practically worship it, and some even _die_ for it. Now if you think about it, money does sound a lot like God, eh?

After crossing the empty hallway, we managed to get inside the elevator.

"Ayel?" she spoke; her hand on her left cheek. "My face hurts."

"Uhh..." I thought for a while as I giggled. "That guard must have really big hands."

"I don't even remember his face."

"He slapped you while you were struggling," I convinced her.

"Oh... Okay."

_You got what you deserved,_ I thought. A small sore cheek was nothing compared to the hell I've been through. It was only the tip of the iceberg. But revenge would have to wait; something bigger was afoot. Whatever it was they were doing, I'm pretty sure it wasn't a free facial.

_Damn it!_ I said to myself. _Things just had to get more complicated. And I just happened to be on the right time and the right place. Lucky me._

As the elevator doors opened to the hangar, a huge wall stood in our way. A smile hung from his face; his hands behind his back. He was tall alright, as high as the elevator door. He was big, he was scary. It was him—the _kidnapper_.

"Goodevening ma'am, sir," he spoke as he kept the door open. "Overtime?"

I shuddered. _What now?_ I thought. I was stunned, I was shocked. Inside the four corners of the elevator, there wasn't really anywhere to go. And then suddenly she spoke.

"Yes, _kuya_ guard."

"I see. You take care now."

I didn't know if he was flirting or stalling, but he was getting on my nerve.

"Can you excuse us?" she said as she grabbed my hand to my delight. "We have a movie to catch."

"Oh! I'm sorry," he said, moving aside. "Sometimes I forget how big I am."

Really? You can forget that?

"No worries, kuya," she replied. "Byebye!"

"Goodbye ma'am, sir."

We continued on our path; the hangar was alive and busy as it should be. Somehow, the growing noise woke me up. But I still couldn't believe she got us out of that. _Stick to the plan, stick to the plan,_ I said to myself. We rushed onwards as some of the pilots began to stare. I know because the head of the panzers were all facing our direction. One even waived his big robotic hand at us. Her grip on my hand tightened.

"Is this your first time to see them up close?"

"Yes. They're scary, Ayel."

"Don't worry, these are construction models. They don't even have weapons."

"Yeah... But still."

"You're really famous, you know," I said, changing the topic.

"Kuya guard was just being nice."

And then I realized: She didn't recognize him at all. The pervert could have made his way with her and she wouldn't even have a suspect to point. _Effective_.

"Being nice my ass," I muttered. That was the same old dialogue she said about every other guy who flirted with her back in college. Soon we were outside, walking along the unfinished building. It was dark. The only source of light came from the back entrance. The mall was still a long way from us.

"Ayel?"

"What?"

"Kuya guard..."

"Yes! I know already."

"He's following us."

"What the—"

I glanced back; it was definitely him. The giant was at least ten steps behind us.

"Shit! Shit!" I muttered. "So that's how it is. He couldn't grab us out in the open so he followed us here."

"Why?"

The back entrance was a bad choice. I didn't realize the way to the mall was this dark at night. We had to move. We had to move _fast._

"Listen. We have to run now. Once we reach the mall, we'll hide among the crowd," I reassured her.

"But why? What did we do?"

"For God's sake! He's the guy who drugged you!"

Suddenly her eyes opened wide. Perhaps she did have some common sense buried deep under that thick skull of hers. After a moment, she nodded.

"Don't let go of my hand, okay?" I said.

"Okay..."

"I'll count to three, then we'll make a run for it."

She nodded again. I began to count. "Three, two, one,"— _BOOM_. We darted forward like crazy as I dragged her along; my hold stronger than ever. Kuya guard noticed and began to make chase. He was fast. What would you expect from a fitness buff? My heart pounded; the adrenaline rushed. I could see a faint light up ahead—the back mall entrance.

"We're almost there!" I encouraged her. She breathed heavily; her face looked agonized. "Just a few more steps!"

It was good. The plan was good. But before we could even reach any significant distance near the mall, two things happened right at the same time: My ex tripped and dropped to the ground, hitting her head. It was her heel—it broke. I then realized she was hurting because of it. Soon the guard caught up to us, just two steps from us. But that wasn't what bothered me the most. It was the second thing. Out of the dark corner of the unfinished building, a shadow unveiled. He approached us slowly, stopping just in front of us. A triangle was formed: me, the guard, and _him_. Out of his black leather jacket, he pulled a gun—a Glock 17 with a _silencer_. It was the same model as my father's. My heart skipped a beat. Maybe there's a double meaning to why they call it the "silencer": to silence people like us. I sighed. _So this is how it's going to end._ Ambushed in the dark alley; how classic, how smart. _Really smart, Ayel._ I wish I never learned this route from Janet. The guard shifted his attention to the man; his stare, unflinching.

"You did a good job, _Rider_ ," the guard said; his voice: cold and flat.

"You know me," the man answered back. "I always finish my job."

"Yes, you do."

His gun was still pointed downwards. The guard stood calmly as the assassin bent down to pick up something from the ground.

"Excuse me," he said. "I dropped this while I was busy trying to find a place to hide."

"By all means," the guard replied. "We are all civilized. Are we not?"

"Yes, of course."

He stood up again, and with his left hand, he placed the black object on his head.

"That's a really nice _hat_ ," the guard commented.

"Yes. Maybe someday I can send it to you as gift when this is all over?"

"Yes. Someday perhaps."

The man then turned his head towards me. He smiled.

"So we finally meet face to face, Mr. del Rio."

## PHASE 14

## PEER TO PEER

The cold night wind blew stronger, but the growing nimbus from the far horizon seemed to have settled for a while. The clouds parted; the moon revealed its beautiful head, sharing whatever light it can to all drunken bystanders and call center agents.

"It's the calm before a storm," the man said, looking up towards the vast gathering of constellations. I stared at him without saying a word; he turned back to face the guard.

"Shall we?" the man said.

"Do it," the guard replied.

Goodbye Janet. Goodbye mom. Goodbye Kulimlim.

After a few seconds, two quick succeeding shots were fired, as soft and silent as a whisper. My eyes were still closed, but I felt no injury, no pain. As I opened them, I saw the guard lying on the ground; his pants soaked with blood. Looking closer, I saw one shot for each leg.

"Don't worry, kid. He's just unconscious," the man said.

I took a deep breath. Perhaps it wasn't my time yet.

I hesitated for a while, but I just had to. I had to _know_.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"You can call me _Rider_."

"What do you want from me?" I asked as I attended to my ex. "You've been following me since the wake."

"Yes. You see—"

Before he could utter another word, he placed his finger on his mouth. As I tried to listen to whatever it was he was hearing, flashes of light appeared from the direction of the office.

_Flashlights_ , I thought. More were coming.

"We can talk later, kid," he said. "You have to go now!"

"But how about you?" I said, lifting up my ex and placing her arms around me. "When can I see you again?"

"I'll find you, kid. I always have."

"Okay."

"Now go! Take her with you!" he yelled as he rushed toward the coming reinforcements. "And don't go home to your place or anyone at the office!"

I thought for a while, but it did make sense. If Tantuco was going to start an investigation about us, they would probably start _within_ the office. The footsteps grew louder. There were probably at least three of them.

"Alright!" I yelled back.

After a few steps, my ex managed to speak.

"Ayel?"

I turned to her. I didn't realize blood was already leaking to her neck from the cut on her forehead.

"Shit! You're bleeding fast!"

I took out my napkin and pushed it on her injury.

"What happened?"

"There was this guy. He helped us escape."

"Okay..."

As I dragged her along, I turned to her again.

"This isn't good, _"_ I said. "If we go to the mall like this, people will take notice."

Soon we were beside a delivery truck, just across the back entrance of the mall.

"Then where do we go?" she said.

"Alright, we'll fix that cut first. Just cover the blood in your uniform with my jacket, okay?"

"Ayel..."

"Yes?"

"Look."

About five storeys high, a cab was descending down towards our direction. The doors opened as the driver greeted us.

"Hi miss!" he said. "Need a ride?"

Of all the damn luck! Back in college, tricycle drivers would flock over her, asking her if she needs a ride even if we just got off another one. I see cab drivers have suffered the same fate.

"Yes!" I exclaimed.

First, I carried her inside, careful not to hit her already injured head. I followed from the other side and soon the doors began to close on us.

"Where to?" the driver said, half turning his head.

I looked at him blankly. That was the same question on my mind. '"Ahhh..."

"I see. You're looking for the right motel, eh? "

Now why didn't I think of that? Nobody would find us there. Nobody would know.

"A motel? Yes! Perfect!"

"Whoa! Nice moves. I see you got her pretty drunk."

I looked down; she was lying on the backseat with her head on my lap. I kept the napkin on the cut, covering her chest with the jacket.

_Good thing manong didn't notice the blood_ , I thought.

"Where is the nearest one along Cubao?" I asked.

"Cubao? I have the perfect one in mind."

"Alright, you're the boss!" I joked.

He laughed hard. "Here we go!"

As he pulled downward on the wheel, the cab began to ascend, slowly rising toward the towering malls and the offices. I looked back at the alley where I left the man who saved us, the man who called himself "Rider. _"_ The flashes of light vanished as the unfinished building returned to its dark, foreboding glory, surrounded by shadows everywhere. The pod rose higher until the people below were no more than ants. After a while, I noticed she was playing with my knees. I began to play with her hair, combing it, then scratching it up again. Old habits _do_ die hard. As we reached Cubao, my phone suddenly vibrated. I took it out and checked for the caller. I was surprised. _What could he want now?_

"Hello?" I answered.

"Hey Ayel!" Ian said. "I dug up something cool!"

"What?"  
"You have to see this!" he insisted. "Can you come over to my place?"

"In the province? Are you crazy?"

"Haven't you read my emails?" he said a little louder. "I moved to Fairview with my mom last month."

And then it hit me. Boom! _Fairview, QC? Why not?_

"How 'bout right now?"

"Whoa! That was fast!"

"C'mon Ian!"

"Sure! Just mention the gasoline store near Doña Carmen Village, Fairview, Quezon City. I'll pick you up there."

"Alright! Better get your ass there! We're already in Cubao."

"Oh, okay. See you then."

"Okay, bye."

Oh Ian. I never bothered to check any of his emails, but this was the best news I got since I got promoted. Ian has no work, never goes out, and most people from the internet only know him as Cadence. The guy is basically invisible. It was the perfect place to hide.

"Oh _manong_?" I patted him. "Can you drop us at the gasoline store near Doña Carmen Village, Fairview, Quezon City instead?"

"Fairview?" he asked. "Change of plans?"

"Uh yeah. Something like that."

"Alright. Fairview is just about five minutes from here."

"Okay, take us there."

"Sure thing."

As we approached our destination, I bent my head down to her face. "Hey, are you dizzy?"

"Just a little. My leg hurts."

"You must have sprained it," I said. "Don't worry. We're going to stay at Ian's place for a while. You remember him, don't you?"

"Yeah... He's the big guy, right?"

"Yep, that's him."

After a while, the doors began to open.

"Okay. This is it," the driver said.

I handed him the fare, went to the other side again, and carried her in my arms.

"Thanks!" he said with a smile. "Take care of that girl of yours, alright?"

"Yeah! I will!" I yelled as the doors closed and the cab began to rise. My eyes wondered around, even at this late hour, the place was still crowded with people. I forgot again—it was Friday. The tables outside the convenience store were filled with teenagers, their pimped-up pods lined up with spoilers and paint jobs.

I placed my ex on the waiting bench since she still couldn't walk. Suddenly, a voice surfaced behind me.

"Damn drag racers," Ian said. "They keep me awake all night."

"Hey Ian!" I hugged him. "Long time no see."

"Yes. It's been a while."

"I see you've grown your hair."

"Yeah." He looked over my shoulder. "Hey, is that your ex?"

"Uh yeah."

"Hi Ian," she greeted, waiving her small hands.

"Hey there!" He waved back. "Didn't know you two were back together."

She just smiled as I scratched my head. "Look Ian. We just need a place to crash for a few days."

"Sure. No problem with me."

"Thanks!"

"Alright. Let's go!"

That's what I like about Ian. He never really asks a lot about the business of others. He just doesn't care.

I bent my knees down in front of my ex, offering her a piggy back ride. "C'mon. It'll be easier this way."

"Okay," she said. "But I gained a few pounds, you know."

"Yeah. You're not that skinny anymore."

She chuckled. "Look who's talking," she said, grabbing on to my back. "You've gained some pounds too."

"Whatever," I said as I stood up. "Just hold on tight, okay?"

"Okay!" she said, squeezing my neck tight and pushing her right cheek to my left.

"Not _that_ tight!"

"Oops, sorry."

"Okay! Okay! Enough with the smoochiness already," Ian interrupted. "It's like I'm watching a _Koreanovela_."

"Sorry 'bout that," I said. "Lead the way, Ian."

"Alright, follow me."

The house was just a block away. We passed through an _eskinita_ with the usual half-dressed running kids. Upon arriving at the door, Ian's mom greeted us cheerfully.

"Oh Ayel!" she said. "How are you?"

"Hi _tita_!" I said. "It's been so long!"

"Oh yes, yes! You look good, Ayel."

"Ehem—" Ian interrupted.

"Oh! Where are my manners?" she said as she opened the door for us. "Please come in."

"Thank you, tita."

We moved in toward the dining area. The house was fairly decent for the neighborhood. The ceiling was at least cemented. But it was small. The house was like one big square with small divisions to separate the individual areas. I placed my ex down on the sofa.

"Please excuse our small apartment," tita said. "I just started working and Ian here still hasn't found a job yet."

"How about you, Ayel?"

I wish I didn't say it but it was instinct. "Oh, I work at Tantuco."

"Wow! So you're a big shot now, eh?" she said. "Not like Ian here."

"Mom!"

"Well it's true, Ian," she said. "Have you followed up on that other call center yet?"

"I will. I will," Ian muttered.

"Oh and who is this beautiful girl?" tita asked. "Is she your girlfriend?"

"Hi tita," she said.

For a while, I stuttered. "Uhh..."

"Isn't it obvious, Mom?" Ian interrupted, _again._

"Well, maybe they're just friends."

"Duh!"

"Alright, have you two eaten yet?" she said.

"Uh... Now that you mention it..."

"Good! Ian! Prepare the food!"

"Okay."

"We still have some _sinigang na baboy_ ," she said, as she closed the door. "C'mon put your bag over the couch."

"Okay tita." I answered.

Ian came out of the kitchen with a bowl of steaming goodness. The smell was so good. My stomach growled. He placed it over the round dining table; you know the one with the rotating circle in the middle where you place the viand and the rice.

"Alright, you two eat plenty, okay?"

"Where are you going, tita?" I asked.

"I work at a call center now," she answered. "I'll be home tomorrow."

"Oh..." was all I could say.

"Please take care, tita!" my ex added.

"Don't worry about me. Ian here will take care of you."

"Mom, you're going to be late again," Ian said.

"Oh, yes. Make yourselves at home!" she said, closing the door behind her.

Ian began preparing the plates and glasses. Once everything was set, I carried old Yoda towards the dining chair.

"Alright! Itedakimasu!" I said.

"Go ahead," Ian replied. "I'll be down on the basement."

"C'mon! Let's catch up for a while!"

"I'm in the middle of a game right now."

"Playing again?"

"Yeah. You guys can sleep in my room over there," he said, pointing at the door beside the basement stairs.

"Is it really okay for us to stay here?"

"I told you already. Plus mom will love the company."

"Yeah. Tita is really nice."

"Oh and you can use my clothes in the cabinet if you need to."

"Alright. Thanks, Ian."

"No worries."

"Anyway, you should come down later. I'll show you something cool."

"Alright, alright."

After handing over the spoon and fork, he went straight down to his lair. The smell continued to fill up my nose. My ex started to reach for the bowl.

"Oh! Let me," I insisted.

I took her mug and filled it up. After that, I took the cooking pan and filled her plate with rice.

"Hey... Not too much."

"Going on a diet?"

"Yeah! Look at me. I'm a pig."

_Wow. She considers herself a pig._ I wish all pigs were like that.

"Well... You know, it kinda suits you."

"C'mon... Really?"

"Yeah, you're much better with a little bit of fat."

She laughed again, which only brought back all the memories. "Thanks, Ayel."

We continued to chat about the old times and how different college is from the corporate life. One thing that my ex and I had in common was we were both old school. Or perhaps she just came from a less fortunate family. You see, she was a working student. Her parents couldn't afford to pay for her tuition, much less buy a 100K panzer phone. And even when she started working, way before she had Jill, all her money was spent on electric bills and his younger brother's tuition fees. The rest that she could have saved for herself was borrowed _indefinitely_ by her relatives.

For me, those are the _worse_ people. They're capable, completely healthy, and have no disabilities whatsoever, but they keep on relying on other people for their needs. These are the bums, the couch potatoes, or the " _batugan_ " in my native tongue. They're like parasites, sucking on their host until the poor animal dries up. That's why the poor never gets rich. The parents just raise children, only for the kids to provide additional income for them. In time, these children lose any sort of ambition because all their well earned money just passes through their hands. And when they become parents as well, they just repeat the cycle all over again.

An exception would be my father.

He didn't get to what he was by borrowing money from his relatives. It wasn't surely because of mom either, since she was just a lowly banker back then. No, no, no. He worked _hard_ for it. You think my dad came from a wealthy family? Think again. His dad, my _lolo_ , was a regular policeman and my _lola_ was a housewife. Besides that, my lolo's favorite was my uncle, the eldest. He sent him to the best college, with the course he wanted. So what about my dad? He was neglected. He wanted to be an architect, but lolo already spent all his money on his eldest son. Now what did he do? Well, most people would give up life and just become a tricycle driver, but not my dad.

He worked as a water boy for a basketball team and several other jobs just to be able to pay for his expensive course. After a few years, he finally graduated and passed the board. He didn't start out big as everyone would think, but he surely made it. Why? Because my father didn't have any vices; he didn't drink beer, didn't go to bars, didn't smoke, and didn't have any ladies drink. Well, maybe he _had_ in his youth, but when he got married, he saved all his money for his family. Add his genuine talent and his sincere devotion to his family and I guess you can imagine how we ended up where we are. He's my idol, really. I actually developed a motto from how he lived: " _If you want something, work hard for it. Don't depend on the wealth of your parents; don't depend on your relatives. And if you do make it, tell your children of your story to inspire them._ " Now if everyone would think like that, don't you think the Philippines would be a better place to live in?

About thirty minutes later, I washed up the plates and carried her to the room. It was small, really small. There wasn't even enough space for someone to sleep on the floor. Once I opened the door, it was already the bed. A big cabinet sat beside it. A ceiling fan hung from the wall. On the opposite side was a small glass window, about the size of a small monitor screen.

"No wonder Ian doesn't sleep here," I said.

"Yeah..."

"Kinda reminds me of _your_ room back in your house."

"I know. Even the room I rent today is a lot bigger than this."

"Okay," I said as I placed her down on the bed. "Does your leg still hurt?"

"Yeah, but just a little now," she answered "It'll probably be fine tomorrow."

"Alright. How 'bout your head," I said as I bent to look at the cut. "Looks like it stopped bleeding. Still hurts?"

"Stings a little," she said, touching her forehead. "But at least it stopped."

"Good. You heal fast as usual."

"I guess so. What are we going to do, Ayel?" she squeezed the pillow tight. She didn't get the double meaning. "Why are they after us? What did we do wrong?"

"We can figure that out tomorrow," I said softly. "You should get some rest for now."

"How about you?"

"I'm going down to Ian for a while. I'll probably sleep on the couch."

"Okay... Goodnight then."

"Goodnight."

I smiled at her as I closed the door. I then proceeded to the basement. I had to bend my head a little for me to fit in the tiny stairway. I realized the basement was a lot deeper than the usual. Once I reached the bottom, a large vault-like door blocked my way. I knocked.

"Just push it!" I heard him yell. "It's not locked."

As the heavy door opened, I saw that it wasn't really a basement—it was a nuclear safe house. Sacks of gravel lined up on walls, old analog phones and big old CRTs hung about. Canned goods lined up on the corners. And what's worse, the room smelled like Ian.

"What the fuck is this, Ian?'

"It's a nuclear safe zone built during the Chino-American War," he said, turning around on his rotating chair to face me. "A lot of people were afraid of being nuked around that time so they built places like this."

"Alright, I get that," I scratched my head. "But why are _you_ here? Don't tell me you chose this place because of this basement?"

"First, close the door. It'll defeat the purpose."

"Sure, sure," I muttered as I closed the heavy door.

"Actually, I did," he continued. "Mom found a bigger place but it didn't have a safe zone."

"My God..." I shook my head.

"C'mon now. With all the advancement we're getting with panzer technology, the next World War may be just around the corner! And with the terrorist group _Kalayaan_ blowing things up, you never know when a place like this will be useful, right?"

Ian was always the idealist, the radical, but I guess he did have a point. At least his mom would be safe in case something like that were to happen.

"Okay, I give up," I said, lifting my hands in surrender. "So what's this thing you're going to show me?"

"Oh! I almost forgot!" He moved away from the computer and approached another table by the corner with a big CRT monitor. I never thought anything would be able to pull him away from his games. But whatever this thing was, it just made me more agitated. "Here! Come closer!"

As I peered in to look, I saw a small application with a monitoring screen, similar to the one I saw in that strange clinic.

"Hey Ian!" I startled him.

"What? I haven't even shown you anything yet."

"I saw a screen like that in our clinic!"

He wasn't listening anymore. He took out a panzer phone, probably a PZC-NEXUS07 like my cousin's.

"Wow! So this is the big surprise? You finally bought a panzer phone?"

He continued to ignore me, placing the phone on the desk. He then pulled something out of the drawer again. It was a strange old looking device.

"What is that?"

"First, this is not mine. It's my mother's. Second, this is signal detector."

"Is that the one they used to detect radio frequencies during the war?"

"Duh! Anyway, this model is pretty old school. It basically helps out with finding hidden frequencies used by the enemy lines. They barely use it these days since the panzers took over."

"Okay... But phones _do_ make a signal, right?"

"We'll get to that."

After tweaking and plugging his device to the CPU, he began pointing the detector towards the phone. He then pointed me towards the screen.

"Look at that," he said. I looked closer; it was blank.

"Of course it's blank. Nobody's calling."

"Now look at this. This was taken yesterday with basically the same circumstances," he said as he clicked a video file from the desktop. "Do you see that?"

My jaw dropped; I shuddered. It was a beat—a _heartbeat_ from a phone.

"What the hell?"

"Sweet, eh?" he said, pretty proud of himself. "I was tampering with the detector about a week ago when I decided to play with the receptors."

"So why is there no signal now?" I asked. "Why just yesterday?"

"That's the weird part," he said. "I tested it every day for a week. Sometime it's ON, sometimes it's OFF."

"That _is_ weird. But what the hell is that?"

"I don't know. But what I _do_ know is it's _not_ your daily radio station."

"What?" I stood up. "Then what is it?"

"I just told you. I just played with the receptors," he said as he turned the phone off and placed it back on the drawer. The program I downloaded was created by this famous underground programmer called _Cloak and Dagger_. He probably saw my website and decided to email me the application with steps on how to use it."

"So what else did this guy tell you?"

"He just said to test it, but he never replied when I emailed him."

"So what is this we're seeing?"

"Well... My guess is this is a signal, a sort of wavelength that makes the panzer work," he explained. "Perhaps this is the reason why The Source is the _only_ energy source that the panzers respond to."

"My God. If this was to get into the hands of another company—"

"Then Tantuco would fall."

"Look, Ian. I have to tell you something."

"What?"

"The reason why we're here."

"Go on."

"You see... I saw a similar looking screen back in our office. The weird thing was _happy feet_ was drugged and strapped to the bed by a guard—"

Ian suddenly laughed. "Happy feet! I forgot you called her that."

We used to call her that because of her slightly webbed feet.

"As I was saying, there was this strange contraption on her head attached to the screen. It had a countdown, but I removed it before it ended."

"That's a good story, Ayel."

"I'm not kidding! God damn it!" I raised my voice; Ian was somehow startled by it. "We ran from the guard, and there was this strange man, shooting followed, and now we can't even go to our house because we don't know what the hell is going on!"

Ian stared at me; I never shouted at him before.

"Alright..." His head came closer. "Tell me all about it."

For about an hour, we talked and we talked: starting from the balcony all the way to his house. Ian took in every corner, every second, every detail.

After a while, he shook his head. "I have no idea what they want with you two, Ayel, but knowing Tantuco, it's probably something deep, way deep."

"Can't you think of something?"

"Well... perhaps she learned something that she wasn't supposed to?" He placed his hand below his jaw. "So they were using some sort of memory erasing device?"

"Is that possible with panzer technology?"

"Yes." He nodded. "I heard rumors of that kind of device being used by the Chinese military. They can even use it to extract information, they say."

"Shit..."

"I told you before, Ayel. _Anything_ is possible with panzer technology."

"That makes a lot of sense, if you put it that way."

"Yes. But great power is not supposed to be taken lightly, especially if it didn't come from us."

"Still not buying a panzer phone then?" I joked.

"Not in a lifetime."

I smiled, then I sighed. "We're in some deep shit, aren't we?"

"Yes, you are," he said, as he began to nibble on some chocolate from his pocket. "Whoever that _Rider_ guy is, you have to meet him again."

"Yeah. He said he'll find me."

"Good. And whatever it is that your lovey-dovey over there might know, you better get it out of her fast."

"I know," I said as I began to yawn.

"You better get some rest too," he said as he pulled another bar from his pocket. "You look dragged."

"And you better put that chocolate in the fridge instead of your pocket," I added.

"The fridge is too far."

"Alright. Thanks again, Ian."

"No prob. Now where was I..." he said, turning back to his online game.

Good old Ian. Despite hating how he lived, I always enjoyed talking to him. Nerds of the same feather _do_ theorize together. I opened the vault door again and closed it behind me. As I went up back the stairs. I noticed the lights were out.

"A blackout?" I muttered to myself. I proceeded to look outside the small window by the kitchen. "Looks like it _is_ a blackout."

Instinct pulled my hand to my pocket; a flash of light pierced through the darkness as I pulled it out.

"Ian!" I called for him. He couldn't hear me. I looked down the stairs; the round vault door emitted light around it; and behind it, a mechanical rumble began to surface. _The fucking bastard has a generator for his safe zone._ How genius. But the apartment above was still covered in darkness. I pointed the light towards my bag in the sofa. I shuddered from what I saw. It was a huge rat nibbling on my bag, probably bigger than a kitten.

"C'mon!" I said in frustration. "If only Kulimlim were here." Suddenly, I remembered my poor cat trembling, all afraid in the dark. But then again, she had night vision, so all was good. _I'll get her back, somehow._ Seeing that the sofa wasn't safe, and that tita's room wasn't really an option, I had only one choice: the room beside the stairs—Ian's room. I approached the door and twisted the knob. I took a peek; she was fast asleep. She was wearing a big black T-shirt, XXX large by my guess. I stepped in silently so as not to wake her up. I closed the door behind me and slowly took off my shoes. With the flashlight still on, I placed my phone on the bed so I could manage to move. I removed my barong and hung it with a hanger. I swallowed. A bra was already hanging behind the door. She suddenly stirred, pushing herself towards the wall as she hugged the hotdog pillow. She then scratched her lower back, pulling up her shirt which revealed her bare white flawless legs. I swallowed again. But that wasn't the only thing that bothered me. Under the extra big shirt, I learned she was only wearing one thing and one thing only—a black _T-back_.

## PHASE 15

## REGRESSION TESTING

It was around three in the early morning. For some reason, I woke up. Oh yes, there was a blackout; it was fucking hot. I decided to go to the kitchen for a drink. I took my phone again and switched the flashlight on. You know one more thing that I love about that phone? The battery never runs out. Well, maybe it does but it really lasts long. Even if the battery reaches _no_ bar, it'll still make it to the next day. Compare that to panzer phones which you have to charge every now and then.

As I opened the door, a rat darted across; it was smaller than the first. _Damn this place is infested._ I wondered if Ian was actually breeding them. I closed the door behind me so no unwelcomed visitors would join the bed. In the kitchen, I placed the phone near the sink as I took the pitcher and filled the glass. Looking outside the window again, I noticed the night sky was bright as ever. With the whole city shrouded in darkness, the sky was the only thing you _could_ see. It was so beautiful. It has always been there. Sometimes we're just too busy with our lives that we fail to notice the beauty that is right in front of us.

After taking a leak, I went back to the room. It was so hot because the small window happened to be shut tight. I decided to remove my pants. Still having my _sando_ and boxer on, I crept carefully as I laid my feet on the bed. It was really small; only one person could have a good night's sleep here. But we had to make do with what we had. I began to close my eyes with my chest facing the ceiling. I sort of dozed off, but after a while, my eyes opened again. It was useless; I just couldn't sleep. My forehead and back was already sweating. It was just too damn hot. On the other hand, if I had left the door open, the rats might have decided to sleep over. Just imagine them creeping into your boxers. Yeah, that's the feeling. As I stared blankly towards the ceiling, my vision slowly adjusted to the darkness. The small window also helped out, sharing a bit of light from the stars above.

I turned my head left; she was still facing the wall. _Damn, this bitch can really sleep._ Since my sando was already soaked, I decided to take it off. I turned around to my side as I faced the door. Trying to lose consciousness, I closed my eyes again. Suddenly, she began to move, turning around to my side. She placed her arm around my waist as she buried her face on my back. I was her new pillow. I decided not to move and just go with it. But then her hand stirred slowly, moving down towards my crotch. I bit my lip.

She was moving her hands a lot in that area.

I closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep. She continued to amuse herself, but soon I was feeling it too. My stick began to harden; her busy hand moved up to my tummy as she made circles around it with her finger.

She was teasing me, alright. _I'm asleep. I'm asleep,_ I told myself.

All of a sudden, her hand dropped fast; swooping into my boxer. It gave me the chills. She began rubbing it softly, circling her thumb around the head and slowly making her way down the shaft. I tried not to moan; it felt so good. She started to move her hand up and down. Soon I was wet. I know she felt it too. With her thumb again, she used the discharge from the head as a lubricant. Her hand began to move faster in that repeated cycle: up and down, up and down. It felt so good; she just knew how to make me feel good down there. I tried to keep it in, but I no longer could.

Finally, I moaned.

As she continued with her business below, I felt a sudden cold wet touch on my ear—she was licking it. She was swinging her tongue around as she swooped in the middle back and forth. I could feel her large breasts on my back; so soft and warm.

I moaned again.

That was it. I could no longer take it. I pulled her hand out and turned around to face her. Her hair was all messy. I placed myself on top of her as she pulled me in with her arms. Our mouths were about a finger apart. I stared at her face; somehow, I could still manage to see her. Her eyes, her nose, her lips; I just had to. I couldn't resist it anymore. I closed my eyes as our lips locked, pressing hard against each other. I pushed my craving tongue in; she did the same. My right hand began playing with her ear as my left raised her shirt to touch her breast.

"Oh, how I missed you!" I whispered.

"I missed you too, Ayel..."

It was a delight. My hand was not enough to cover it all. I caressed it, feeling the tender flesh against my palm, using my thumb to play with her nipple.

She let out a soft moan, like a whisper. "Ayel..." Her back suddenly arched. "Feels good..."

My mouth found its way to her ear. I raised her hair as I began licking it.

"Uhhh... Not there..."

I didn't stop.

She moaned loader as she grabbed my hair. "I missed you so much..."

I continued down toward her neck; it smelled so good. The pouring sweat was intoxicating. I licked it all the way down as I pulled on the shirt to reveal her shoulder; it was smooth and milk-white. I began savoring it, licking back and forth on her neck down to her shoulder; all the while I was rubbing my stick on her crotch.

Her breathing grew faster. I decided to go down.

"Wait, Ayel..." she said softly. "Let me remove this."

"Oh, okay," I said as I helped her remove the big shirt. I was so busy that I forgot. Now nothing was blocking my way. I grabbed her two mountains, caressing them and fondling them as I started to lick on each one.

"Oh, Ayel... It feels _so_ good," she said with her hand on my hair. "Please... Suck it."

She moved her other hand to the side of her breast and squeezed it hard for me to swallow. "Please..."

I didn't think twice. I opened my mouth and swallowed it, but her breast was so big that only half of it was inside my mouth. She squeezed harder so I could swallow more.

"Oh Fuck! Uhhh!" she moaned again, in a slow, steady pace.

With my other hand, I caressed her other breast.

"You like this, don't you?" I teased.

"Yes... Please..." she begged as she squeezed the other one. I moved to it, sucking as hard as I did on the other. My tongue circled around her nipples as I swooped in from time to time. Her already large breasts were now even larger as she got hornier; her nipples were so hard. With my two hands playing on each one, I moved down, licking on her chest all the way down to her tummy, soft and delicate to the touch. My stick thumped like a heart inside my boxer. I was getting harder as well.

"Looks like you shaved?"

"Uhhh.... Yes..." she moaned in-between soft whimpers.

"Why are you wearing a T-back?"

"Uhh.. I just like to..."

"Really?" I teased. "Or was this for me to notice you?"

She looked at me with longing eyes. "Ayel... Please..." she muttered. "I'm so wet."

"Just say it..." I said, spreading her legs with my face just between them. I began to lick both sides of her inner thigh, sucking on them as I moved up and down.

She moaned louder, her soft cries much deeper. "Yes! Yes! I did it for you! Uhhhhh!"

That was all I needed to hear. I moved aside the part covering her womanhood.

"It doesn't smell fishy today?" I kidded her. She just frowned on me as she pulled my head towards it. My lips met with hers from down below. I kissed; she moaned long and hard. Using my right hand, I played with her clit. I used the left to open her lips so I could lick the inside. It was throbbing. It was so wet.

"Uhh! Shit!" she continued to make a noise while moving her hips to her delight. "Uhhhh... Oh Ayel... Yes! That's it! Put your tongue in there..." Her back arched high; she was pulling on my hair with both hands now. She was dripping hard; the bed was already wet. I licked it whole as I grabbed on her thighs to spread them wider.

"Shit Ayel! Uhhh... Uhh..." She began moving her back up and down. "Oh God! That feels so good!"

Moving back a little, I realized even her inner thigh was wet. I began to insert a finger, then two, then three.

"Holy shit! Uhhh!!" she moaned so loud, but we were oblivious to the outside world. Tonight it was just us, no more, no less. "Ayel... Please... I want you now..."

_I thought she'd never ask._ I hurriedly took off my boxer as she took off her T-back. I lay on top of her; our breaths heavy with ecstasy. I kissed her torridly as she grabbed my hard tool, pulling it between her legs.

She moaned with a whimper as our intimate parts locked together. It was so warm inside her, so wet. I began to pump on her.

"Uhh!" She closed her eyes as I buried it deep. "Yes! That's it! Uhhhh..."

"I missed being inside you..." I said.

"Yes... I missed it too..." she said softly. "Please don't stop."

"Okay..."

I began to pump again; the feeling was so good. She grabbed my ass from behind, pulling it hard with every stroke I made. She began to sway to my rhythm too, moving her back up and down.

"Oh fuck, Ayel!" Her noise grew loader and loader, in an ever increasing pace, as if she was forever running out of breath.

"Shit! Feels so good I'm going to come!"

"It's alright, go ahead," she said sweetly. "We can come together."

"Okay."

I pumped again as I fondled and sucked on her breasts, squeezing it tight. I licked hard on her neck down to her shoulder, then back to her chin.

"Holy shit, Ayel! Uhhh.. Harder... Faster... Fuck me harder!" she demanded.

I raised my head as I placed my hands on the bed. I grinded harder, pushing and pulling, getting faster by the second as I matched my movement to her quick breathing.

"Uhh! Yes! That's it... Uhhhh.. Ahh!"

"I'm coming!"

"Do you want to cum inside?" she asked softly.

"Can I?"

"Yes... It's safe."

I smiled. I pounded harder and harder. Her legs were raised high: one on the cabinet, the other on the wall. She continued to dance with me; the dance in the darkness.

"Here it comes!" I moaned, the sweat dripping from my forehead.

"Yes! Uhhh! Shoot it all inside me... Uhhh.." she moaned, scratching my back. "Oh Ayel! Fill me up! I want your juice all inside me!" Her eyes looked so weak as she neared climax. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes..." She whimpered incessantly. "I'm coming... I'm coming!"

"Ahhhhhh!!!"

"Uhhhhhhhhhh!!!" she moaned so loud with her eyes closed as I released every drop of mine inside her. In return, she squeezed my stick tightly inside of her as she reached orgasm.

And then, suddenly, the night was silent again. I lay above her, heavily panting.

"Oh, Ayel..." she whispered. "I can feel your cum inside me. It's so warm."

"Yes... It feels good."

She began to move her waist, trying to squeeze out any juice left from me. "Oh it feels _so_ good, Ayel."

"Hey, stop moving."

"But you're still cumming. I can feel it," she teased me.

"Uhh! It doesn't feel right. Ahh.."

She pulled my face with her hands.

"Just kiss me..."

"Okay..."

Our lips met again as she moved to her delight. She wouldn't let me pull it out so I just let her play with it. Soon I closed my eyes. I could feel the warmth of the blackout again. But before I could even move to wipe the sweat, she spoke.

"Want another round?"

## PHASE 16

## VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT

Light struck from the glass; it was seven in the morning. I woke up to the crow of the rooster, screaming his lungs out. The ceiling fan was moving; the power was back. Everything had returned to normal, except for the fact that I was lying naked with a woman beside me. She was still asleep, probably tired from the _long_ night. Her arm was wrapped around me, placed right above my chest. The room was bright enough; I could see her whole body: her voluptuous figure, her soft porcelain skin, her cute little webbed fit. I bit my lip. As my hand moved closer to her, a familiar sound came from the floor.

It was my phone; it was vibrating. Still lying on the bed, I reached for it and picked it up. I blinked when I read the name. It was her—it was _Janet._

"Hey! Are you busy today? Wanna go out?" she texted.

_Shit! What have I done? All I wanted was to_ fix _everything, but now everything is so messed up; everything is in chaos. Shit! Shit!_

I thought for a while before I replied.

"Nope, I'm not doing anything! Where you wanna go?" I typed nervously. I paused for a second before hitting _send_. Once I managed to, a message appeared:

MESSAGE NOT SENT

_Shit! I really have to load my phone now!_ I cursed to myself. _I have to warn Janet!_

I lifted her arm carefully as I started to get dressed. Looking inside the cabinet, I noticed a black shirt with a white swastika in the middle. Did you know the symbol originally meant good luck? Hitler just decided to use it for his own cause, turning the once noble symbol into a sign of fear. If you think about it, it's the opposite of what the Romans did with the cross. They took an emblem of punishment and turned it into the very symbol of their religion. It's kind of funny if you put it that way.

Now if _you_ were to establish a religion, what symbol would you choose to represent it? An electric chair? A hanging rope? Or perhaps a guillotine? For me, I'll choose the _iron maiden_. That would be pretty cool, eh? That's the funny thing about symbols: one can mean a thousand. It's just up to you on which interpretation to believe. But for me, I chose the former. Where I was going, I really _needed_ some.

After getting everything ready, I looked at her one last time. She was still asleep, hugging the hotdog pillow tight and pushing it onto her face. I took the blanket on her feet and covered her body. As I came closer to her face, I stared at her and smiled.

"You were always the apple of my eye," I whispered. "But then again, I never really did like apples."

After that, I kissed her forehead, her nose, down to her lips. "Goodbye my _boo_... Goodbye."

I then proceeded outside. As I closed the door, I noticed tita was already back, sitting by the dining chair. She was staring blankly at the door. She didn't even seem to breathe.

"Tita?" I called. "Are you alright?"

"Oh Ayel!" she gasped, placing her hand on her chest. She looked dragged, _really_ dragged. "You surprised me!"

"Sorry, tita," I apologized. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes, Ayel. I'm just a little tired, I guess."

"Okay. You look like—"

"Oh! Have you eaten yet?" she interrupted. "What do you want to eat?"

"Don't worry about me, tita." I sat by the sofa as I tied my shoes. "Are you _sure_ you're okay?"

"Well..." She hesitated for a while. "It's really hard."

"What is?"

"This job. This call center thing," she said. "I thought it would be easy as long as I was good with English."

"Oh..." I managed.

Behind the kind and cheerful façade was a woman holding in so much pain. Suddenly, tears fell from her eyes. "They kept on cursing and cursing."

"Yes... I've heard about that."

"Do you want to know what happened?"

"What, tita?"

"I cursed back," she said as she began to laugh as well. "I yelled and I cursed till my voice ran out."

"And?"

"What do you think, Ayel?" she said, weeping her tears aside. "They fired me."

I clenched my fist. I was angry; I was mad. But not at the call center manager who fired her. No, no, no. I was mad at Ian for putting his mother through something like this. _He_ should be the one accepting all the curses, not his mother. Someone her age should already be retired, watching _telenovelas_ on a couch all day. I loved tita like my own mother, and to see her like this was heartbreaking.

"It's alright, tita," I said as I comforted her. "Don't worry. I'll talk to Ian again."

"Really?" she stuttered. "You talk to him about this kind of things?"

I stood up and headed to the kitchen to get some water.

"Yes," I continued. "I have always urged him to finish his subjects, to finish college, and now to get a job."

"Thank you, Ayel," she said as I handed her a glass of water. "You're really a good boy."

I chuckled at the compliment. "Not _that_ good, tita."

Somehow, I managed to stop her tears as I placed a smile on her face. "Ian is very lucky to have a friend like you."

"And I'm also lucky to have a friend like him."

For a moment, she just smiled at me, holding the glass firmly with both hands.

"Oh! Where are my manners?" she said as she stood up, looking for food to prepare. "You must really be hungry by now."

"Ah... tita?" I asked, scratching my head.

"Yes?"

"I have sort of an emergency right now," I said. "Can I come back later?"

"Oh... What sort of emergency?"

"Just a friend. I think there's a problem."

"Oh my... An accident?"

"Oh no, tita. Nothing like that."

"Okay," she said. "Just be sure to pick up your girlfriend afterwards."

I paused for a while. _I would have to come back sooner or later, I guess. I also have to ask her what she knows about Tantuco._ But it just had to wait. I _had_ to make sure Janet was alright.

"Ayel?"

"Yes... Of course, tita." I smiled. "I'll be back."

"Alright. Take care now."

"Yes ma'am!" I said as I saluted to her. She just laughed. I wish I could have stayed longer, talking to her and just making her laugh, making her forget all the shit and crap she had to endure for her one and only Ian. Most people would crave for the education and opportunity that Ian had, but he just had to take everything for granted. I sighed. _I'll get everything sorted once I get back,_ I said to myself.

Passing along the dark and wet eskinita again, I felt my phone vibrate. It was ringing this time. As I reached the street outside, I realized the bystanders were looking at me. A group of three teenagers wearing large jerseys and silver earrings were whispering towards one another, staring at my pocket as I reached for my phone. I didn't hesitate at all. Once they saw how _hi-tech_ my phone was, they sighed and went back to their conversation. That's the best thing I like about my phone—its _theft_ free. As I answered the call, I smiled as my ears fluttered.

"Hello?"

"Hey!" she said. I didn't realize how cute her voice was in the phone. "Did I wake you up?"

"No! I was up early."

"Okay. Whatcha up to?"

"Nothing!" I burst in excitement. "Hey, are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah... Why?"

If she had already been brainwashed, then she probably wouldn't remember it at all. I had to see her for myself. I _had_ to make sure.

"Ahh... I'm just worried about you."

"Awwe... You're really sweet, Ayel."

"Huh?"

"Anyway, have you had breakfast yet?"

"Nope!"

"Good!" Her voice grew louder. "Let's meet up at the _Z-Mall_."

"Okay!"

"It'll be on Greenhills around that time so you better not be late!"

"Sure! No problem."

"Okay! See you then!"

"See you too! Take care!"

I was _so_ happy. My feet were floating in the air; it was my first weekend date with Janet. I could imagine us eating at a fancy restaurant, and then watching a movie afterwards. And much later we would just be walking and talking as we shared our ideas, mindlessly unaware of everyone around us. Yes, that sounded like a perfect date. _But first things first_ , I thought. Larger matters were at hand.

I have to find the perfect timing to tell her, too.

I raised my hand, waiving for any pod that would pass by such a place—there was none.

"You won't get a pod anywhere here," the old woman behind me said. I didn't notice her before. She was sitting on the ground with her long, dirty and torn dress, selling _suman, maha, puto_ and all the _kakanin_ you can think of. "Want to buy something instead?"

I looked down on the menu. I was a bit hungry. "How much for the _puto?"_

"60 for three pieces."

"60 pesos?" I exclaimed. "Is that made of panzer?"

"Gotta make a living, you know."

"Find another victim, granny."

"Forty!"

"Make it thirty," I bargained.

"Alright, alright," she muttered.

Stupid lady. Probably thought I was one of those rich students she usually fooled. I understand panzer stuff is expensive and all, but people have the choice to avail them or not. People like her have no reason to increase their prices because the old affordable alternatives are still around. It's just stupid, _really_ stupid.

"So where can I get a cab around here?" I asked, handing her the money.

"Just walk straight alongside this road," she said as she gave instructions. "You'll find a cab line near the small bakery on the corner."

"You could have just pointed it to me in the first place."

"Life's not for free, kid," she replied, handing me the plastic. "You gotta earn everything."

"Fine."

"You take care now, okay?"

"Whatever," I muttered.

I turned sideways as I moved along the busy sideways with the warm plastic on my hand. Walking uphill, I would sometimes step onto the road because the pedestrian sideway would meet a house, a market stall, or a group of tables outside a restaurant. Soon there was no sidewalk to walk onto anymore. It was just the road with all the smoke you could inhale. As I reached the bakery, I noticed a gathering crowd on the opposite side. A pod was tilted diagonally, with its bumpers sticking on the ground.

"It's another one of those damn night racers," the guy over the counter said. "It's the fifth time this month."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Car crashes are common around this area," he added. "I remember the last one falling on Boyet's roof just a few blocks from here."

"Whoah! Did anyone get hurt?"

"The driver suffered minor injuries, but old Boyet was always out in the street drinking so he was fine."

"I can't even imagine a pod crashing through my house," I said as I nibbled on my cheap ration.

"You better, kid," he said, pointing a finger at me. "You better be prepared for the worse!"

"Don't worry," I assured him. "By this time, I'm pretty much prepared for anything."

"Good."

As I turned around to face the street again, I saw a pod dropping a passenger off just a block away.

_Finally_ , I said to myself.

After a few minutes, I arrived at the destination. The trip was fast and easy too; not much traffic at all. I went straight to the bathroom first. Good thing I made it. You see, the problem with the Z-Mall is that its location depends on the time. Sometimes it's at Greenhills, sometimes it's at Mandaluyong, sometimes it's at Pasay. Oh, and did I forgot to mention? The Z-Mall is a giant _floating_ mall; the only one in the country. It's practically a mini city open 24-hours a day. Having the anti-gravity reactors ON non-stop is really expensive, but when did malls actually save on electricity? As for the mall itself, it's even bigger than North EDSA. Just imagine that. As for the exterior, it basically looks like any other mall, besides the fact that it's floating in mid air.

Once you get inside though, it's a totally different thing. Bright lights filled up the place, large advertisement screens covered the ceiling, the pillars, heck, even the floor. You would see commercials _literally_ everywhere. Panzer demonstrations were around every corner; holograms speaking everywhere. The place was the Akihabara of panzers; a technological haven. After I washed up and fixed my hair, I stood near the fountain in the middle of the ground floor, waiting for Janet's text. Suddenly, a hologram popped in front of me. He looked like your typical salesman.

"Goodmorning, ma'am/sir!" he greeted. "Is there any product I can help you with?" These cheap holograms were not programmed to determine the gender of their customer, so they just say ma'am/sir to everyone.

"No," I replied. "I'm just waiting for a friend."

"Please do visit our shop," he said as he waived his hand towards the direction. "We have the latest smart phones and tabs around."

"Sorry," I said as I began to move. "I'm really not interested."

"We also have the latest LEDs, holograms and—"

I moved past through his transparent body before he could mutter anymore sales talk. Walking along the collection of stores, more holograms continued to appear, doing the best they could to lure me in.

"Download, sir?"

"Sir! Over here!"

"Hi sir! Download? Jailbreak?"

"Sir, games? Upgrade? Downgrade?"

These holograms can really be annoying. What's worse is they can follow you and you can't even punch them because they're not real. What a drag. After a while, the annoying voices managed to leave me alone when I reported them to the guard. That's one thing about the Z-Mall; there aren't really much _real_ vendors around. Just one for each store and the rest of the salesmen and salesladies are holograms. It's actually cost efficient if you think about it. And as for shoplifting, nobody would dare with all the hidden cameras around. As I moved up to the second floor, I saw an intriguing product.

"Hello sir," the hologram greeted. "Would you like to try the Virtual Girlfriend S9?"

I would have ignored her like the rest of the holograms, but this one was wearing a bikini. She sort of reminded me of an actress that I watched when I was little I think it was _Anjanette Abayari_ , famous for a lot of sizzling scenes during the 90s. She was very pretty, with _morena_ complexion, long hair and bigger than average bosoms. Having celebrity holograms was expensive, but one thing about them is they never grow old. Plus they had higher specs; she knew my gender.

"Tell me about it," I engaged her.

"Our latest model, the VG S9 is completely customizable," she said. "You can have anyone you want."

"Really?"

"Yes, unlike our previous releases which only allowed you to customize pre-selected women, the VG S9 is the first in the line that actually allows you to design the girl of your dreams."

"So how is the process?" I asked. "And what makes this Virtual Girlfriend different from a normal hologram?"

"The process is very simple. You can choose from the templates such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Puerto Rican," she said as she changed her image to demonstrate each. "And then you can start tweaking from there."

"Can you change back to the Japanese again?" I said, biting my lip. I think it was Rie Sakura. Or was it Reon Kadena?

"You can even use existing photos of a girl you like or upload a collection of features of the different girls you like to make one ultimate dream girl!"

"Whoa..." I said, obviously tempted. "That would be really nice."

"Yes!" she replied. "As for your second question, the Virtual Girlfriend S9 models like myself emit high-def resolution. We could walk along with you anywhere and nobody would even suspect we're a hologram until they touch us.

"Yeah. You're not low-res like the ones below."

"Yes! We also come with a Virtual headset and Love Gloves.

"What are those for?"

"With the Virtual headset acting as nerve reactors, you could basically touch and feel us with the Love Glove."

"Now that's what I'm talking about."

"If you buy now, I can also add a special item called Sweat Dreams," she continued to explain. For some reason, I wasn't nervous while talking to such a gorgeous woman, mainly because she wasn't real anyway. "Sweat Dreams allows you to have a date within a virtual reality of your own choosing."

"Like those virtual games linked to the head?"

"Yes! With Sweat Dreams, you could go anywhere with your Virtual Girlfriend! You could be dating in Paris, swimming in Boracay, or making love in the most exotic places, all in the comfort of your own bed."

"Sound's really good," I nodded. "I don't even have to pay for any tickets or hotel fees."

"Yes! Do you want to try it?" she offered.

It was tempting, alright.

"Just a try, right?"

"Of course, sir," she said as she led me towards a private room. "Come this way, sir."

The room was small, basically used as a demo venue for various panzer products. It was dimly lit though, with shades of red on the corners. There was a small bed on the side.

"Please lay down, sir," she said. "Place your head under the Sweat Dreams machine."

As I sat down, the saleslady was starting to remove her bikini. "Don't worry, sir. I'll take care of you once we're inside the system."

I swallowed. Now this was the way to get your product sold. I turned to look at the incredible machine I've been hearing about. Suddenly, I shuddered. It was a cool, savvy looking machine, with flowers painted on the side and a logo below it. But what bothered me was its shape: round, white, and vaguely familiar. It looked like what it looked like—a facial steamer.

## PHASE 17

## MISSION VISION

"Anything wrong, sir?" the attendant asked, covering her breasts with her arm.

"Ahh... I just remembered I have a date," I said.

Even if it was an excuse, it was true. I _did_ remember.

"Oh... That's unfortunate," she said as she changed her image back to Anjanette. "Please do come back when you're available, okay?"

"Sure thing!"

Walking out of the room, I managed to bump in to a girl, a _real_ girl. She was wearing a cute black and red Sunday dress with a red headband with cat ears.

"Hey!" she said.

"Oh, sorry!"

And then we stared at each other, her hanging frown flipping upwards into a smile. "Ayel?"

"Hey, you!" I managed.

"What were you doing inside?"

"Ahh..." I stood blank in front of her. "I was—"

"Hey, were you trying out that Virtual Girlfriend outside?" she said, pointing a finger at me.

"No!" I explained. "I was trying out a new game."

"Really? I thought you were pretty old school."

"No harm in trying, right? It was free anyway."

"I guess so..."

After an awkward moment, the crowd began to pour in. I grabbed her hand and pulled her outside.

"Hey!" she said. "Where are we going?"

"Just follow me!"

"Okay."

I looked back; the sexy hologram was waiving at me, sending off a flying kiss. Janet was about to turn around too when I asked her.

"Have you eaten yet?"

"Nope!" she said smiling. "Where do you want to eat?"

"Anywhere you want."

"That's really hard," she said. "How 'bout you? What's your favorite?"

"Ramen?"

"Alright!" she replied. "There's one up on the third floor."

"Cool! Let's go."

After moving away from the store, our steps began to slow down to a normal walking pace.

"Ayel?" she said softly.

"Yes?"

"Nothing!" she said, turning her head to the other direction.

"What is it?"

"You're still holding my hand."

"Oh, sorry!" I said as I released my hold. "Forgot about that."

She just smiled, though I noticed she was blushing.

As we stepped onto the escalator, I stood a distance from her, pretending to look down below. I was smiling as well. I didn't notice it at first but she was moving closer to me. Suddenly I felt a spark between us, a _literal_ spark.

"Ouch!" she muttered.

"Did you feel that?"

"Yeah!" she said as she rubbed her shocked hand.

"Let me see that," I said, pulling her hand and comforting her. "That's common on an escalator."

She didn't reply at all; just staring at me with those beautiful eyes.

_If only the_ escalator _would never reach the upper floor,_ I thought. But it had to. If you're in love, physics just seems to be irrelevant. Shit! Did I say that?

"You're so cute," I accidently spoke my mind.

"What did you say?"

"Ahh... Nothing!"

She just laughed like she always did. There was something really cute on how she giggled. As we reached the third floor, I realized she was now holding _my_ hand and wasn't letting go.

"You smell really good," I added.

She giggled again. "You're just hungry."

"I guess so," I said. "So what's with the cat ears?"

"Why? What's your problem?"

"Nothing!"

"Hmm..."  
"I actually find them cute," I reassured her.

"Really? I'm starting to be myself without thinking of what others think."

"That's good to hear."

"I learned from the best."

"You sure did."

At the ramen bar, we realized the place was already jam packed. An attendant soon approached us. Whether or not she was a hologram didn't really matter.

"Table for the couple?" she asked.

"Yes, please!" Janet replied.

"Come this way," she said, leading us toward the cute little table on the center.

"Nice spot!" I said.

"Yeah!" Janet added. "Just perfect."

"A waitress will be with you shortly," the attendant said as she vanished out of thin air. She _was_ a hologram.

"It really gets weird here in Z-Mall with all the holograms."

"Isn't it cool?" she said. "We can play a hologram guessing game!"

I laughed at the thought. There's never a dull moment with her. "You really are a funny girl."

"C'mon! I bet that girl over there is a hologram too!"

"Who? The hot girl with the guy?" I asked. "She's a customer."

"But look at her plate! She hasn't eaten anything at all!"

I took a closer look; she was right. The guy was the only one eating and he was about to be finished, while the girl was just staring at him with an empty plate.

"Whoa..." I opened my eyes wide as I turned back to Janet. "So that's a Virtual Girlfriend."

"One point for me!" she said cheerfully.

"Alright, how 'bout that one?" I said, pointing my eyes toward the direction. "That doll like Korean over there."

"Her? She's real."

"How come?" I asked. "They haven't ordered anything at all."

"I just know," she insisted. "Look, she's standing. She's going to the restroom."

"That could all be part of the illusion."

"So it's a bet?" She leaned forward. "If she's human, it's your treat, okay?"

"And if she's a hologram?"

"Do whatever you want."

"I'll kiss you on the forehead."

"What?" She stuttered. "Don't say stuff like that."

"It's agreed, okay?"

"Fine," she muttered.

As we intensely stared at the doll, a waitress suddenly called us from behind. Her tag name was Aileen.

"Your order ma'am? Sir?"

"Oh!" I turned around. "I'll have the regular spicy N2."

"How about you ma'am?"

"I'll have the same as well."

"Drinks?"

"Just water," we both said at the same time. And then we laughed.

"Okay. I'll repeat the order. Two spicy N2s and tap water," she confirmed. "Is that all?"

"Yes! That's all," Janet answered.

"Okay, your order will be served in fifteen minutes," Aileen said as she turned around to take the order of the other group besides us.

"Now where were we?" I asked.

"She's back on her seat."

"Did you see her open the restroom door?"

"I didn't."

"Damn," I muttered. "But I know she's a hologram. Someone who looks and dresses like a doll couldn't possibly be real."

Suddenly, she raised her hand to call for a waitress. The guy walking alongside their table accidently bumped onto her arm.

"Look who's paying now," she said, pointing at the Korean with a smile. "The guy probably thought she was just a hologram too."

"Shit."

She laughed annoyingly. "Keep your promise, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. But how did you know."

"I went with her to the restroom when I arrived," she said as she played with the chopsticks. "She asked me to help her fix her wig."

"That's cheating!"

She laughed again. "Sore loser!"

"Whatever..."

"Do you know who's another hologram?"

"Who?" I said, a little annoyed.

"The new receptionist at the office."

"What?" I asked. "You're kidding, right?"

"Have you ever touched her?"

"Of course not!"

"I did!"

"Really? What did you do?"

"I tried to shake her hand and mine just went through her," she said.

"I'm starting to think you're a lesbian..."

"What?"

"Just kidding."

"Anyway, that's the point," she added. "Her job only requires greetings and information. A job like that is perfect for a hologram."

"Damn. She was really hot."

"What did you say?" she said as she narrowed her eyes.

"I said she was really life-like!"

She laughed again. "That's better!"

"I bet Miss Aileen here is a hologram too," I said as raised my hand to slap her behind.

"Ayel! No—"

It was too late. Miss Aileen's behind, as well as her whole body, was completely real. She turned around to me, raising an eyebrow. "Excuse me, sir?"

"I'm sorry!" I said in a low tone. "I thought you weren't real."

"Hmp!" she grumpily dragged herself back to the kitchen. After the embarrassing incident, I found Janet giggling in front of me.

"Hentai!"

"Hey... I thought..."

"How do you think they serve the food? Teleportation?"

"Whatever."

She continued to laugh on her own tone.

"I hope we still get our ramen," she joked.

"I hope she doesn't spit on it."

"She'll only spit on yours!"

"What if she gets them mixed up?"

"She won't!"

"It seems Miss Janet has finally found her talent."

"And what is that?"

"Identifying holograms."

She burst out in laughter. I always enjoyed talking to Janet. She was like the perfect combination of a best friend and a girlfriend, all in one package. She's someone you could love but someone you could also tell about your crushes and dirty jokes. She's perfect, just perfect. After a while, the ramen arrived. It was a different waitress.

"You pissed her off," she whispered.

"Hey, I apologized."

"Just kidding," she said. "C'mon let's eat."

"Itedakemasu!"

"Itedakemasu!"

As I started to dig in to the spicy goodness, I noticed she was playing around with her chopsticks.

"You don't know how to use them?" I asked.

"Yeah..."

"Then why didn't you ask for a fork?"

"I just wanted to try them out."

"Jeez..." I said. "Here, let me show you."

I grabbed her hand and positioned the chopsticks properly.

"Like this?"

"Yeah, and you hold on to the other one firmly."

"Okay! I'll try."

She began to dip the sticks to the bowl, but her hand was shaking. After a while, she just gave up.

"This isn't one of my talents either," she said.

"You just need practice."

"Miss?" she said to the waitress beside her. "Can I get a fork?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Janet just stared at the bowl, stirring it up with one stick. "Go ahead."

"Here," I said, offering to feed her until the fork comes. "I can wait..."

"Say ahhh..."

"Ahhhh..." She swallowed it all, slurping up the long dangling noodles. I wiped her chin.

"Wow it's really spicy!"

"Delicious, eh? "

"Yeah!" she said as she drank some water. "It's really good."

I fed her more, wiping her mouth each time. The fork never came. I'm glad it didn't.

"Hey, you should eat too..." she said softly. "It's getting cold, you know."

"It's alright," I said. "I'll eat once you're finished."

As I wiped her chin again, she suddenly grabbed my hand tight and pushed it to her cheek.

"Why are you so sweet?"

"Uhh... I don't know."

"Are you like this to all the girls? To your ex?"

"Look Janet, about that..."

"I have a question. Please answer it sincerely."

"Yes?"

"Am I your special someone?" And then she leaned closer. "Or just someone special?"

"I..."

"Yes...?"

"I lo—"

"Here's your fork ma'am," Aileen interrupted. Of all the moments she could ruin! Damn it. Janet released my hand, suddenly timid of her question.

"Thanks a lot," I said.

"You're welcome!" Aileen replied with a smile.

Soon Janet was eating on her own.

"You can eat now," she said.

"Okay..."

There was silence for a while; the kind of silence caused by awkward moments; the kind that would make you pull your phone out and check it for no reason at all.

I checked it out; there were no messages as usual.

"Are you back with your ex?" she suddenly asked.

"What?" I thought for a while. It was just one night. That didn't count as getting back. "No we're not."

"Okay," she exhaled. "That's good."

"About last night..."

"What about it?"

Ms. Aileen proceeded to serve the dishes to the nearby tables: some tofu, maki and tempura elegantly prepared on the usual bento boxes. I stared blankly at my bowl, thinking of the next words that would come out of my mouth: _Where would I start? Do I have to tell her everything? Would she even believe me?_ _Or_ _maybe it could wait for later? Maybe now we should just enjoy the moment, this date, or whatever you'd like to call it._

I tilted my head up, staring at the wooden ceiling motif.

Yeah, that sounded right.

"Hey!?"

"What?" I said, looking back at her. Now I was the one playing with my food.

"So what happened?"

"Ahm..."

She looked at me straight to the eye, piercing deep into my very soul. I was powerless. "Tell me!"

"I saw something."

"What?" she demanded, gripping the fork tight above the table. "What did you see?"

"I saw the guard grabbing my ex as I was about to meet her."

Suddenly, she just stared blankly, as if all the emotion was sucked out of her.

"And?"

"He took her to this clinic," I continued. "When I followed them, I saw her strapped to the bed with this strange device over her head."

"Perhaps she had a headache?"

"Headache?" My voice rose a little higher. "He practically drugged her."

"Shhh..." She tried to calm me down. "And then what happened?"

"I freed her of course and we ran."

"From the guard?"

"Yes! He came after us while we were in the hangar."

"And?"

"He caught up to us but this other guy, this guy who's been following me for quite some time, appeared out of nowhere and shot him in the legs."

"So what did he tell you?"

"Nothing, just that we had to escape and he'll find us."

"I see."

"I see?" I raised an eyebrow. "Why are you so calm about it?"

"What do you think that machine was for, Ayel?"

"I'm not sure, but my friend told me it might have something to do with manipulating brainwaves."

"Really?" Janet leaned forward with a ferocious curiosity. "Can you tell me about this friend of yours?"

"Who? Ian?"

"Yes."

"He's a paranormal blogger."

"And what else did he tell you about it?"

"Nothing much either," I answered. "But I did see this machine in that store we came from. It looked a lot like the one I saw at the office."

"So what do you think?"

"I think Ian was right. " I placed a hand on my chin. "I think they were going to brainwash her or something."

"I see. And this _Rider_?" she asked. "What else did he tell you?"

"I told you. He just—"

Suddenly, I shuddered as I felt goosebumps climbing up my shoulders. Of all the people in the world, why did it have to be her?

"I never told you his name," I said firmly.

She was back to eating her ramen, sipping up the half-warm bowl. "I guess I got carried away."

"What!?" I asked, confused at it all. "How do you know that!?"

"Finish your Ramen, Ayel," she said calmly. "It's getting cold."

"God damn it, Janet!" I raised my voice. "Don't tell me you knew all about this!?"

In a split second, everyone in the restaurant turned their heads towards our table, towards _me._ I no longer cared if I was causing a commotion. None of it mattered.

"I guess there is no point in hiding it."

Hiding what? Did they get to her first? Was I too late?

"Tell me," I demanded.

"Survival."

"What?"

"We are here for the survival of the human race."

"What the hell are you talking about?" I said as I stood up and grabbed her arm. "C'mon I'll take you to Ian. He might know a way to help you!"

"There is no use in fighting the inevitable, Mr. del Rio."

Her voice felt cold and flat. I had to get the old Janet back, I just had too. "Don't worry, Janet. Ian will find a way."

Pulling on her arm, I noticed everyone in the bar was still staring at me. They had the same blank expression that Janet had: steadfast and unwavering. As the elevator ascended from outside, a flash of light reflected into the room, engulfing their faces in a split second. I was stunned. _It just couldn't be._ I began to take a step back, unsure of what I just saw.

I took out my phone and turned the flashlight on. There was no doubt about it. As I swept the light across the room, I realized each and every face around me had one thing in common—blue eyeshine.

"Join us, Mr. del Rio," they all said in one voice. "Join us in creating a better world."

## PHASE 18

## THE BOSS

_Holy shit!_ I cursed to myself. _What the hell is this?_

I started to take further steps away from the bar, away from the crowd, away from Janet. They didn't seem to be following me so I just proceeded down to the ground floor. More holograms came to annoy me; I just passed through them like they were ghosts. Eventually I bumped in to an old lady, mistaking she was a hologram too.

"Oh sorry, ma'am!"

She looked at me and smiled. "It's alright, Mr. del Rio."

I blinked. _My God! And I thought it was just the bar._

Making my way out of the crowd, I pushed and I pushed the people aside, no longer caring if they were a hologram or not. Everybody's eyes were around me, staring like I was the kid that broke their window. But for imagination's sake, let's just say it was a really scary feeling. I just had to get out; I had to get to Ian. As I approached the exit where the cabs lined up, I noticed they were all walking slowly towards me, getting faster with each step I took.

Shit! This isn't good!

Outside the mall, the wind blew stronger than I expected. I looked at the cab drivers; they too were the same. I didn't even have to flash their eyes; their cold stare was scary enough. As the crowd came in closer, I began to lose hope. I was stuck on a floating building with no way out except to jump. What else could I have done? After a while, the crowd split apart, making way for someone in the middle— _Janet._

"Ayel!" she cried out. "Forget about them!"

"You're not yourself!"

"Let's just be together!" she continued. "Just you and me!"

"But—"

"I love you!"

"What?!"

That was everything I needed to hear.

"Please don't leave me!"

Brainwashed or not, she was still Janet. With those three words, I realized one thing—I felt the same. I was willing to stay, just for her, just to be with her.

"I won't!" I shouted back. "I lov— "

All of a sudden, my words were muffled by the loud engine of a pod, apparently coming out of nowhere. It was a green pod, a green LYNX. The door began to open.

"Move aside, kid!" Rider yelled as he pointed his gun at the crowd—at Janet.

"No!" I shouted, rushing to protect her. I blocked his view as I spread my arms wide to cover her.

"Are you crazy!?" he yelled back. "She's a _Dependant!_ She's not normal anymore!"

"I don't care what she is!" I answered. "I love her!"

"You're fucking insane!"

Suddenly, Janet pushed me with all her might from behind as she blocked the others from approaching me.

"Go, Ayel!" she yelled as tears ran down from her eyes. She was... protecting me. "I'll be alright!"

As I took a step forward to go back to her, I felt Rider's hand pulling on my arm.

"Let's go, kid!"

"I'm not leaving her!"

"You'll have to!"

I stared at her one last time; those cute Korean like eyes, that cute cat ear headband, her lips that I would never get to kiss.

"Go!" she said as the engine began to muffle everything around me.

"Don't worry!" I shouted. "I'll get you back!"

The door began to close, and as I peered into the mirror, I saw her smiling at me; a mix of joy and sorrow carved onto her face.

I'll get you back... I'll get you back...

"You're really one stupid kid, you know that?" Rider said. "But the way you stood in front of her like that; that took a lot of guts."

"What the hell is happening?" I demanded. "And how the hell did you find me?"

"Remember that vaccine shot you took?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"That doctor was one of our moles at Tantuco."

"A mole?"

"Yes. We instructed him to give you a tracking beacon."

"You mean there's a fucking machine inside me?"

"Don't you worry," he said. "It's microscopic. Plus it's not panzer technology, I can assure you that."

"So that's how you've been able to find me all this time," I said. "But how about the wake? That was before the vaccination."

"Following you from the office was easy. But a beacon was still necessary just in case things like this should happen."

"I see..."

"So you really thought I was _that_ good?"

"Shut up!" I banged on the window. "Tell me what happened to her!"

"Hey, easy, kid."

"What happened to Janet and the rest of the people there?"

"They're all _Dependants_."

"What the hell is that? Are we talking about drugs?"

"Well, yes, in a way."

"I remember reading that word in one of Steve's emails."

"So he _did_ warn you."

"So Ric was..."

"He's one of them too."

"Shit!" I cursed. "And my teammates?"

"Have they been rendering unpaid overtime, weekend work and basically working like robots?"

"Yes!"

"Then I guess they're Dependants, too.

"Shit! All this time?" I said. "Are they using that machine to turn people into workaholics?"

"You mean the wave emitter?"

"So that's what it's called!"

"Yes. That device is indeed powerful."

"So what does Tantuco want?" I continued. "She was talking about creating a better world."

"That sounds so much like him."

" _Him?_ "

"Do you know those are the exact words he said to me the first time he approached me?"

"Who is _him?_ Is this the guy controlling them?"

"Yes... You could say that."

"C'mon, tell me!" I urged him. "What does he plan to do with all those people? What does Tantuco plan with them? Raise the revenue by making everyone work for free?"

He laughed hard, banging on the wheel. "That's a good one!"

"Hey, I'm serious!"

"Perhaps there is a person more suited to tell you all the details."

"Who?"

"Don't worry," he said, fixing his hat in position. "You'll meet him soon enough."

A little later and we were far off from the Z-Mall as it vanished from the horizon. By this time, we were hovering above Pasig River. I began to calm down as old Rider turned on the radio. _Doobidoo_ was playing.

"Nothing like the classics, eh? "

"Never imagined you to be an APO fan."

"What? Old dude can't be a fan?"

"I guess you just look like somebody who doesn't listen to music at all."

He chuckled. "Do I? Really?"

"Yeah. You look like a mafia or something."

"It's just the look, kid; don't be fooled by everything you see."

"I guess so..."

"Look below."

"The river?" I asked. "I've always wondered why they never get that cleaned up."

"Why do you say?"

"I mean, we get a Pasig Run like every so often, but I don't really see any improvement on the river itself."

"Our country is just like this river; the people are hoping it gets better, but we're not really doing anything about it."

"Tell me about it," I said. "All those people running around in their cute little marathon shirts should just be cleaning up the river instead."

"That's right, kid. Blindly giving your money to people and expecting them to do the job isn't really going to make things any better."

"That's why I love my country," I said with a smile on my face. "Look at those squatter areas."

"Remember Bush's last visit?"

"Yeah, the government covered them like they didn't want to show how a third world country we are."

"Funny thing is," he replied. "When that _Bourne_ _Legacy_ film was released years ago, everyone in the world saw the truth that the government was so intent on hiding."

I laughed; it was true. But instead of being ashamed of how poor the Philippines looked like in that movie, the Filipinos were so proud that their country was finally featured in Hollywood. It's sad, really. Somehow, the Filipinos are just that shallow. I mean, poverty is clearly rampant but what are the people doing?

To make things easier for you to understand, let me tell you a short tale about the usual scenario:

After a heavy night of drinking, the husband comes home and says, "Hey honey, I don't really have a job but do you want to have a baby?"

The missus replies, "That'll be our thirteenth baby! Is that alright? I don't have a job either!"

The husband then insists, "It's alright! The government will take care of us as they promised! The Church also has no problems with overpopulation so everything will be alright!"

"Okay! Let's go!"

And they have sex happily ever after, or until one of them gets sick, dies or gets arrested. *Sigh* People suck at math but they sure do know how to _multiply_.

After a few more minutes, we arrived at a parking lot building, a building specifically for pods about thirteen storeys high. Imagine it as the usual mall parking lot, except this one can be accessed from _any_ floor outside and functions more like a cargo storage, with each pod having a specific slot. We began to descend towards the fifth floor as the large metal gate opened.

"We're here," Rider said. "Wasn't that a nice, smooth ride?"

"Yeah."

The lights filled up the garage as the gate began to close. The slot was just enough to park the pod, though a table, a fridge and a small foldable bed lay on the side.

"Do you sleep here?"

"Sometimes," he said. "It's the one place that I can actually relax."

"How much do you pay for this slot?"

"It's free, actually."

"Really?"

"Yes, a friend of mine owes me and allowed me to use his slot."

"That's cool."

"As if you had a pod to park," he joked.

"I'm just saying, man."

"There's a sandwich in the fridge."

"No thanks, I'm full."

"Alright, let's go."

He led me towards the elevator on the corner. Moving inside, he swiped a card on the panel and punched in a password.

"I didn't know it was that strict here."

"They _should_ be," he said. "Have you seen the squatter outside?"

"Well, I guess you have a point."

As the elevator descended, I noticed it was a bit _shaky._

"What's the matter, kid?"

"This elevator and this power source, it isn't Tantuco, right?"

"Nope!" he said proudly. "This place is pure, natural, and completely Chinese-free."

I laughed at his answer. "That's good to hear."

I was excited to go out as the floor light neared to the ground floor. A few seconds later and I realized that the door didn't open; the elevator just passed it.

"Where are we going?" I asked. "Is there a basement?"

"Yes."

"But why isn't it in the elevator buttons?"

"It's only for special personnel."

"So that explains the password."

"You're catching up, kid."

The elevator kept on shaking and bumping. I wasn't used to the old school elevators anymore. It was like the feeling of a roller coaster slowly rising before it dropped. It made me feel nervous, but Rider beside me was just as cool as ever.

"Is it just me or is this basement really that deep?"

"It's _really_ deep," he replied.

Soon we arrived. Light pierced through my eyes; it was so bright. Moving inside, I discovered a whole armory, a hangar, a base. It had the same basic layout of the hangar at the office: docks with bipedal robots lined up on both sides, the same bright but flickering lights, and of course, yelling and construction noise everywhere. As we proceeded to our course, a panzer suddenly stepped in front of us, blocking our way. The motif was cool though: all black with a red paint job on the shoulder as if it was a tattoo. I looked at it closer, then I realized where I was.

"Rider!" the man inside the cockpit said. "Who's this kid?"

He never opened the cockpit, though he sounded like a much older man based from his voice.

"He's the one I've been watching."

"Really!?" he said as he pointed the bayonet towards me. "Are you sure he's not one of them?"

"Don't worry, Jerk," Rider reassured him. "He's as much as a _Tolerant_ as any one of us."

"Hmp!" he grunted. "You better be sure! We don't want any problems here."

"Sure, sure," Rider replied. "I'll take full responsibility."

"Alright!" grumpy said as he walked away with the heavy pounding of the panzer's steps. "By the way, Freddie's looking for ya!"

"I know, I know."

"Who's Freddie?" I asked.

"He's the one we're going to see."

"Okay," I said, scratching my head. "So you guys are the rebels they call _Kalayaan?_ I saw the paint job on the panzer."

"Freedom fighters," he corrected me. "We have a higher purpose than those suicidal terrorists."

And now I was tagging along with a terrorist group. _Nice one, Ayel._

"But you bomb places?"

"Yes, but only to target specific people."

"How about those malls and buses?"

"That was a ruse of the government to frame us for their crimes," he defended. "They want the people to hate us."

"Alright," I said, having no intention of further debating with him. "So did you guys build this place?"

"Some part of it," he said as place his hands on is waist, turning from side to side. "But the base itself was built by the Americans during the last war as a refuge center."

"I see. Makes sense if you put it that way."

"And it's perfect since the Chinese don't know about it."

"Okay," I said, satisfied with his answer. "So where is this Freddie?"

"Just follow me."

As we moved along the path, we reached a spiral staircase leading up to a small room above.

"I'll be waiting here."

"You're not coming up?"

"Don't worry about me, he said. "You're the one he wants to see."

"Okay."

I climbed up the shaky stairs; it felt like it was going to collapse at any time. Arriving at the top, I knocked twice on the hard, wooden door.

"Come in," a raspy male voice said.

As I twisted on the knob, I felt a rush. Whoever was in that room, he surely made me more anxious. Pushing the door aside, I saw a figure wrapped with a black garb all over his body, as if he was a traditional female Muslim, complete with the _abaya_ and a _niqāb_. It was a bit dark; the only light came from the window overseeing the whole operation where he was busy watering a small red thorny plant.

"The Crown of Thorns," he said as he continued to water them.

"What?"

"Did you know that the _Euphorbia milii_ was thought to be the crown worn by Jesus?"

"The thorn crown?"

"Yes!" he said; his voice getting a little excited. "That's why they also call it the Christ Plant."

"Okay," I said. Now I was talking to some weird old Muslim-dressing gardener. "But how can you grow them here where there's no sunlight?"

"You see, that's the interesting part," he continued to babble. "Just like its namesake, the Christ Plant requires faith to live on."

"Really?" I said. "So it's some sort of miraculous plant?"

He dropped the watering pitcher as he began to snicker.

"Are you stupid?" he said. "Of course, I was kidding."

"What the—"

"It'll probably die in a few weeks, and then I'll ask Rider to buy me another one."

What the hell is wrong with this guy?

"Ehem!" I cleared my throat. "Rider says you're looking for me?"

"And you are?" he said as he sat down on his rocking chair.

My God! All this time and he doesn't even know who I am.

"I'm Ayel."

He paused for a while, and then rocked his chair again. I couldn't see his face; it was too dark. Even his hands were covered with gardening gloves.

"Oh yes! Ayel!"

"So what do you want with me?"

"The question is, young man: What do you want from _me?_ "

"Ahm... You can tell me what I'm doing here."

"Tell me, Ayel. Do _you_ know what _you're_ doing here?"

Is this old man insane? He keeps on returning my questions.

"I'm here because of Rider."

"And why did Rider take you here?"

"Because he saved me from those brainwashed people."

"And who brainwashed those people?"

"Tantuco."

"And besides my other moles, who works at Tantuco that is _not_ a Dependant.

"I'm not really sure anymore."

"Just one," he insisted. "Give me the first one that comes into your mind!"

"Me?"

"Bingo!" he said, clapping his hands. "Now you have answered your very first question."

"You should have just said it."

"Sometime people are so busy looking for answers that they don't realize it's just in front of them."

"Enough with the riddles!" I said. "What do you want me to do?"

"Oh my... Youth is always in a hurry, as it seems."

"Are you listening to me?"

"Before anything else, let me tell you a story."

"A story?" I said. "Time is gold, old man."

"On the contrary, time is _relative_ , young man."

It looked like I wasn't getting anywhere so I just pulled the small chair on the corner and began to listen.

"Alright," I said. "Go ahead."

"Ehem!" he said as if the room was filled with an audience, anxiously waiting for his next book reading to begin. "Our tale began long ago as a group of travelers wondered into an unknown town of strange clothed people who raised crops and animals just like them. But these people had different skin from them, as well as growing hair on strange parts of their bodies. Instead of approaching them, the travelers decided to watch them, observing every detail of their way of living. After a while, they realized that these creatures had the tendency to return to their savage nature similar to themselves. With their home destroyed due to war, the travelers decided to stay and help out the poor creatures. It is at this point that they developed 'The Messiah,' a machine capable of manipulating the minds of others and—"

"Wait!" I interrupted. "So you say this wave emitter has been around for a long time?"

"Ehem!" he cleared his throat intentionally. "As I was saying, the travelers decided to help the creatures by manipulating certain people in high positions for the betterment of their society. They dubbed themselves, the 'Shapers.' For a very long time, it worked. The Second World War finally ended and the Shapers saw there was no longer any need for them or The Messiah. They decided to leave the creatures on their own as they hoped to find a new home. But as their ship was about to depart, the system malfunctioned and the ship crashed onto the nearest island, which is the—"

"Spratly?"

His story was really good. I was starting to get curious on what other alien conspiracy he pulled from the net, thought it sounded like a story I never heard before.

"Are you the story teller?"

"Oh, please continue."

"Where was I?"

"The Spratly."

"Oh, yes. Soon people found about the ship and The Messiah, though the Chinese later found the corpse of the Shapers in the hidden chambers. They never revealed the corpse, but they discovered how to harness the power of The Messiah as an energy source, along with reverse engineering the technology of the machines inside. But instead of sharing the unlimited power they found with the world, they greedily fought for it, leading to the ever famous Panzer War back in 2012."

Suddenly he paused, as if he wasn't breathing at all.

"And?"

"Oh!" He was startled. "And after the war, a certain entrepreneur named Lucio Tantuco decided to turn the Shaper's technology into an everyday commodity that everybody today calls _panzer_."

"Okay," I said. "We already know that."

"As you know, people began to worship these new toys. Everybody would be excited with the latest smart phones, latest pods and hi-def holograms. The word _panzer_ has become the umbrella term for practically anything hi-tech."

"I already know that as well."

"Mr. Ayel," he said. "Do you know that there are two kinds of people nowadays?"

"What are those?"

"People who worship panzer technology are called _Dependants_. People who can manage to live _without_ panzer technology are called _Tolerants_."

"Wait, are you saying everyone who buys panzer stuff are getting brainwashed?"

"Not precisely. But yes, you are partly correct."

"What? Why _partly_?

"It is because the subject has to be exposed to the radiation for at least 24 hours straight for the mind control to take effect."

All of a sudden, this boring old man began to _really_ draw my attention.

"Holy shit! I always thought spending too much time in the office was bad," I said. "But I didn't realize it was _this_ bad."

"Yes. The electricity Tantuco is using is definitely The Source, so everyone who spends almost sixteen hours in the office, plus a few hours of using a smart phone and watching hologram TVs will total to a twenty-four hour straight window for the radiation to attach to your neural system."

"Which will get you infected."

"Bingo! And it gets worst. Once The Messiah, or The Source as you prefer to call it takes over, the subject begins to become more dependent on the panzer technology, which explains why they crave for it, even on an unconscious level. They crave for The Source's wavelength that is emitted from the battery of the panzer device."

"So it wasn't just that machine I saw?" I asked. "Getting infected is as easy as listening to your smart phone while falling asleep?"

"Correct!" he answered. "On the other hand, that special machine you saw had probably enough radiation levels to infect a person in one second."

"So that's what they were doing to my ex."

"Yes," he said. "She was most likely a Tolerant, so they decided to use that device on her."

"I was probably next in line."

"Perhaps."

"So, there are no aliens controlling them anymore?" I asked. "Just Tantuco?"

"Yes."

"But what are they after?" I continued. "With everyone buying everything they sold, the whole country would be filled with Dependants by now."

"Not quite," he corrected me. "The Tolerants are still the winners when it comes to quantity."

"Why is that?"

"Think about it," he said. "Who are the only people who can afford panzer devices?"

"I see."

"The poor people who cannot afford it, as well as old school people like you, are basically the foundation of the Tolerants."

"And the poor basically makes up the bulk of the population."

"Precisely," he added. "There is still hope."

"Tell me, old man," I demanded. "How do you know any of this?"

He snickered again.

"That's actually funny," he answered. "Do you remember the ship that crashed on the Spratly Islands?"

"Yes. We already covered that."

"Before the ship crashed, the pilot escaped using an escape pod and landed somewhere here in the Philippines."

"C'mon!" I said. "How do you know any of this stuff?"

"It's simple." He leaned forward. "I was the one in the escape pod."

## PHASE 19

## TEAM MEETING

After an unbelievable conversation with ET, I woke up about six in the early evening. Somehow, I remember him poking my forehead, then everything went blurry. It was weird. Anyway, all that running from brainwashed people and talking with an alien wasn't really in the plan. None of it was. As I lay on the bed, I found myself dumbfounded inside one of their small quarters. The room was all gray, really dirty, really messy; a typical man's room. It smelled of socks and old clothes, mixed with the odor of some leftover food that had probably been there for days.

"I still can't believe it," I murmured. "If only Ian was here!"

Resting my hands behind my head, I smiled at the poster on the ceiling.

"Hi Anne," I greeted. She just stared at me while holding a bottle of gin; her lips, thick red.

"Come to think of it, every celebrity must be a Dependant," I continued to think aloud. "Jeez... That sucks."

Still not in the mood to walk around, I decided to snooze off a little longer. I closed my eyes and yawned as loud as I could, but before I could even lose consciousness, someone started banging on the door.

"Hey!" I yelled. "Can't they knock normally here?"

The banging continued.

"Alright, alright!" I said, dragging my pants up. "Jeez..."

"Took you long enough," the large bald man sporting a beard said. "Hurry up! We have a meeting."

"Alright, alright."

"Double time! Double time!"

"I know!"

"Faster!" he yelled "You move like a girl!"

"I'm just tying my shoes," I said. "You can go ahead."

It was annoying, really annoying. Suddenly I was like a soldier in a military camp, or worse—ROTC.

"Boy, if you're going to be one of us, you're going to have to _move_ like one of us."

Whoever said I was applying as a terrorist? Was I even qualified? What the hell did Rider tell this prick?

"Look, Mr..."

"Jericho."

"Nice name."

"Yes, but everybody calls me Jerk."

"So _you're_ Jerk." _And_ _quite appropriate, I might add._

"What?"

"Look, Jerk," I said, closing the door behind me. "I'm not here to do any fighting, okay?"

"Then why are you here?"

"Ask Rider."

"Well, whatever the reason is, you should know how to fight if you're going to stick with us."

Fight? Is he crazy? I don't even go to the gym. Heck, I don't even jog!

"Whatever, let's just go."

"Alright! Follow me!"

Arriving at the meeting room, I realized it was just a small storage room with all the pipes on the ceiling. There was a small round table in the middle, as if we were going to play poker or something. The single fluorescent bulb continued to flicker, casting malevolent shadows on the cold cement. As Jerk closed the door behind us, the world came to a halt; the world was silenced.

"Have a seat," Rider said as he sipped on his black mug.

Around the table, it was just him on the right side, a thin nerdy looking guy to his left, while the two empty seats were for Jerk and me. "It seems you already met Jerk."

"Yeah," I said. "Where's Freddie?"

"Freddie is..."

"Freddie doesn't usually talk with us," Jerk interrupted. "He just sits up there all day."

"Really?" I was surprised. "I thought he was the leader and all."

"Leader?" Jerk chuckled. "If anything, he's as good as a cracked up fortune teller."

"Ehem..." Rider interrupted. "Freddie already informed me of his message. There is no need for him to be here."

Jerk didn't speak after that. He just sat there tapping his fingers on the table. By then, it was already clear who had the _higher_ authority.

"Okay, so what now?" I said impatiently. "What's the plan?"

"First, I'd like you to meet our head of R&D," he turned to his left. "This is Mark."

"Oh, hello," I said. "That's Research and Development, right?"

"Correct. It's good to finally meet you, Mr. Ayel," Mark said in a very professional manner. "I can only imagine what you are going through right now..."

Finally! Someone who actually gives a damn! With all the things that had happened so far, I'm glad somebody finally cared to ask.

"Yes, the truth is—"

"Now down to business," he said swiftly.

What the fuck.

"As you all know, the recent statistics show that the Dependant to Tolerant ratio is about twenty to eighty percent. With the rate the poor are breeding now, the battle will be a lot easier for us."

"Never thought overpopulation would actually result to something good," I said.

"Yes, but although Tantuco has began to notice that, the company is not stupid enough to give away their products for free."

"So what are they planning?"

"Tell me, Mr. Ayel. Are you familiar with Little Boy and Fat Man?

"Yes. Those were the warheads dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki."

"You're very good with history."

"Yes! It's one of my—"

"In Hiroshima alone, over seventy thousand people died in the explosion," he explained. "But did you know that over a hundred thousand died of radiation poisoning?"

"Don't tell me..."

"And from that year towards the twenty-first century, about half of leukemia and a measurable percent of cancer patients were among the bomb survivors?"

"Yes. I know that."

"Then I guess you already know what I'm going to say next."

"But why?" I said. "Why would they kill half a million if their aim was to control people?"

"Ayel," Rider answered. "Don't you remember what _he_ told you?"

"To create a better world," I replied. "That's what he said."

"Yes! And perhaps the poor are not part of this better world of his," Rider added.

"No... That just can't be."

"Isn't that your company's tagline?" Jerk asked sarcastically. "Tantuco Solutions: Creating a Better World."

"Yes... Actually, it is."

"Either way," Mark continued, "Tantuco will make use of the bomb to rid of his enemies, while the radiation will turn all the remaining survivors to Dependants. It's just perfect!"

"A perfect plan indeed," Jerk commented.

Soon they were laughing merrily like they were talking about basketball or another boxing match.

"It's insane! It's fucking evil!" I yelled. "How can you guys be so calm about this!?"

"I told you he isn't ready for this, Rider," Jerk said as he scratched his beard. "The boy's too young, too innocent."

"Look, Ayel," Rider said. "We already have a plan."

"Sorry... Go ahead."

"As I was saying," Mark said. "Tantuco will make use of a bomb. Tantuco's scheme and the bomb's details have all been brought to us by one of our moles. As for the mentioned details of the bomb, I believe it's a new kind which emits the usual radiation of a wave emitter, but with the potential and radius increased to a million folds thanks to the blast that the bomb will produce."

"So just to get things clear, people won't die of cancer?"

"No," Mark answered. "The only radiation it would release is the one from which you become a Dependant."

"Think of it as a giant, pumped-up wave emitter," Rider added. "They could really save a lot of time with that."

"I know," I answered. "Tantuco is really good with _saving_ time and profits."

"That Tantuco is really one crazy son of a bitch," Jerk said. "To think of something like this."

"So what's this plan you have, Rider?"

"Intel tells us that the bomb labeled _WME 045_ has been moved to a different location."

"Wait, what did you say?"

"WME 045."

"Yeah! I remember now," I said. "That's the label of the container I saw!"

"I see. So you've already seen it?"

"Just the container though. The bomb was probably already moved before I arrived."

"Right now, the bomb is still in the hangar and at seventy-five percent before completion. That's enough time for us."

"That's a relief," I said. "So you're raiding the building? That's you master plan?"

"Infiltrating," Rider corrected me. "A few of our men will pose as protesters outside. Once I give them the signal, they will start a commotion which will drag the guards and the workers outside. Our panzers disguised as construction lines will then rush into the hangar and place the bomb onto one of our trucks. It will be quick, it will be flawless."

"Sounds good," I said. "So what do you need me for?"

"You will guide me towards the bomb."

"What!?" I said. "How should I know where the bomb was transferred? Why don't you just use your mole?"

"Our mole on that area has been... compromised."

"What the? And you're going to use me?"

"You know the layout, you know the area," Rider defended. "You know that hangar better than anyone else here."

"And here I thought I was just going to give you some sort of information."

"Information?" Jerk said. "Life's a bitch, kid. Get used to it."

"Bombs? Raids? I wasn't trained for any of this shit."

"Relax, kid," Rider said. "We have the location already. You'll just have to point us there once we get in."

"Alright."

Did I have a choice? Could I have said "no _"_ to these people? To these _terrorists_ who were so accustomed to killing people? Tell me, if you were the one stuck in this situation, what would _you_ have done?

"That's good to hear," Mark said. "Now that we have Ayel's cooperation, we can now focus on the details."

"Sure. That's fine," Rider said. "Carry on."

The group continued on as they began to debate about the best route to take, the right time to infiltrate, plan B, plan C, and all the back-up plans they could think of. Like my old prof used to say, the best plan is the one that you expect _anything_ to happen. With all the shit that has happened so far, I guess I finally learned to grasp the idea. Half an hour later, the plan was finalized. It was just one of my weekly team meetings at the office. *Sigh* I wish everything would just go back to normal. But wishful thinking won't get us anywhere. We had to do something, and we had to do it ourselves.

"So, you really think this plan would work?" Jerk said. The two of us were the only ones left in the room by this time.

"Yeah, I think it would."

"But is it worth it?" he said. "Is this world worth saving? Heck, is this country worth saving?"

"What are you saying..."

"I mean—" he tried to look for the words. "Look at this country! It's a wreck! A hopeless train wreck."

Somehow, I knew that was true. Was there really a point in saving a country so fucked up? So ruined? So depressed? With a government so corrupt, a religion so dogmatic, and a population so stupid, was there any hope at all? Behind all the glamour and vanity, all the high-rise condos, fancy restos and private resorts, lies a multitude of squatter areas, rampant beggars and prowling thieves. Indeed, there is something terribly wrong with our country.

As I mentioned before, I wish the whole country was just like Eastwood, you know. Clean, civilized, no poor, no crime; just like Singapore. Well, maybe not so much on the crime part, but have you seen the place where the poor live in Singapore? It looks like a damn condominium! That's because the poor over there are smart enough not to have any more children. In turn, the government can provide for them. It's really a good country, Singapore. Everybody is disciplined. I mean, we basically have the same set of laws as any other country out there. The only problem is that we don't implement them.

Another thing that bothers me is we try so hard to be nationally independent, but deep down the core, our country has already lost its identity. We think anything made locally is cheap, while anything foreign is a must-have. The population has become such low lives, such dependants, that I can't really seem to understand why I never left it in the first place.

One thing I hate the most is how we take notice of Filipino talent only when it is discovered in other countries. It's like, when a certain foreigner with Filipino blood suddenly becomes famous, we scream out and say, "That's a Filipino! That's Filipino talent! We're so proud of her!" But when the talent is discovered within the country, well... let's just say you have to look like a princess to get anywhere in the industry.

We worship and adore anyone in the US with half Filipino blood who probably doesn't speak Tagalog and has never stepped on the Philippines instead of taking notice of the talent that is a hundred percent pinoy and practically grew up in one of our many slums. I just hate that mentally. We have a lot of talent, really. The problem is the people who don't support them. In turn, the media and the government don't support them either. Too much focus on vanity; too much Korean idolism. I just hate it.

"It's sure is a train wreck," I answered. "And I sure hate it here..."

"But why?" Jerk was puzzled. "Why stay?"

"Because there are people here that I care about."

"People?" he chuckled. "That's easy. You can bring them with you!"

"Well, not really. Some of them have responsibilities here," I said. "It's not that easy."

"Really?"

"Yeah... It sucks but it's true."

"Well, I guess you're not that naive as I thought you were," he said. "If there's any reason to fight for, then that's the best reason I've heard."

"Thanks."

"Alright, you should get some sleep. Rider said we'd be leaving at six in the morning."

"I know. It's really happening, is it?"

"You bet, it is."

After a good night's rest, a heavy meal and a refreshing bath, I found myself dressing up as one of the cargo guys, like the ones I usually saw at the back entrance. It was an all-blue jumpsuit with the matching orange hard hat. It smelled like one of them, too. As I joined the assembly, I saw Rider waving at me, standing beside one of the cargo trucks. He was wearing the same attire as me, with the exception of his favorite duckbill hat.

"Looks good on you!" Rider joked.

"It's really itchy!" I said as I began to scratch on my back. "Are these real uniforms?"

"Yes."

"And I assume these cargo trucks are real as well?"

"Yes."

"Did you kill anyone to get this stuff?"

"We—"

"Wait!" I said. "Forget I asked that."

"There was this line from this movie, you know."

"What?"

"Don't ask the question that you don't like the—"

"I know! I know!"

He just laughed as he usually did. Looking around, I counted three trucks. But as I looked at the other guys, I realized they were wearing civilian clothing.

"So they're the back-up and the protester group?"

"Yes," he answered. "There will be more protesters there, but not all of them are part of our group."

"Wait, so most of them are just normal civilians?"

" _Active_ civilians," he corrected me again. "These are people who want a change."

"You're just using them."

"We have the same goal as any one of them," he defended. "We just have a different approach."

"But what if you get them killed? Won't you feel guilty at all?"

"These people are protesting against Tantuco," he said firmly. "They are prepared to die. You of all people should know that, Ayel."

I swallowed. Was I prepared to die as well?

"I guess so..."

"Shall we then?"

"Fine... Let's go!"

## PHASE 20

## THE SOFTWARE ENGINEER

My hands shook nervously; the sweat from my scalp trickled down to my chin as it poured incessantly like a loose faucet. I stared at Rider's hand. He was playing with his pen, twisting and flicking it about; the kind of trick my math teacher used to do back in high school. Somehow, it just made me more anxious.

"Hey!" Rider said. "You've been staring at my pen for the last twenty minutes."

"Sorry," I said. "Just nervous."

"I can see that," he said, placing the pen back on his pocket. "You're sweating like a pig."

I pulled my white face towel out, wiping my drenched face.

"It's freaking warm in here!"

"What did you expect? An air-conditioned cargo truck?" he mocked. "It's not even a pod so expect a _long_ bumpy ride.

"Well..."

"The very reason this vehicle was made was to transport PZX-Rs like this one," he said as he pointed to the large mecha beside us. The robot was bent down with its hands pulling its legs inward as if it were taking a dump. It was positioned that way just enough for it to fit in the truck. "We just came along for the ride."

As my eyes wondered around, I noticed someone was tinkering at the back. I looked closer; it was Mark.

"I didn't notice him get on the truck."

"He was already here before we arrived."

"Hey, Rider..."

"Yes?"

"People turn to Dependants because of panzers right?"

"The panzer's _energy source_ ," he corrected me. "Not the panzer itself."

"Then why do you use PZX-Rs and pods?"

"At last!" he clapped his hands. "I thought you'd never ask."

"Why?" I scratched my head. "I just don't get it."

"Do you know the saying, _fight fire with fire?_ "

"So that's your excuse?"

"That's actually outdated."

"What?"

"The better idiom these days is, _fight firepower with firepower._ "

"That's kind of stupid."

"Listen, kid. As much as we hate panzers, we also can't win without them."

"But won't you turn to one of them?"

"Yes, there's always a risk," he said calmly. "But life isn't as simple as the movies. The line between good and evil isn't always that clear. Most of the time, there's a gray area in between. Most of the time, we have to _compromise_."

"But what if people _do_ turn?"

"Look, I already told you the radiation takes about 24 hours straight to take effect. As long as we take breaks in between, it's fine."

"I guess so, but that's not a guarantee."

"I know... But everyone's prepared just in case."

*Sigh* I hate reality. It's _so_ complicated. Maybe that's why we all love movies. We just need to escape from all the problems and worries and imagine a life as simple as a Hollywood formula for a generic love story. Sigh...

"Do people turn back?" I continued. "Can people be cured?"

"Some show signs, though it would take a whole facility and a lot of care."

"And that's something we just don't have, right?"

"Yes... But your girlfriend. She—"

"Who? Janet?"

"Yes. That girl was able to become conscious at the time she was being controlled by _him_."

"Is that strange?"

"That's rare. I have never seen anyone burst out like that while the _switch_ was ON."

"Hold on a sec. Who exactly is this ' _him'_? And what do you mean by _switch_?"

"I still do not know his true identity. The only thing I _do_ know is that he works inside Tantuco and he wants to _save the world_."

"By creating a better one?"

"Yes."

"I thought he was Lucio Tantuco himself?"

"That's what many believe, but I don't think it's him."

"Why?"

"He's not after money," he insisted. "This man is really strange, really _different_."

"He's crazy for all I care."

"Haven't you heard? All the geniuses _are_ crazy."

Suddenly, I laughed. What Rider said, it really sounded like it came from me. The geniuses are weird, the normal are just normal.

"I guess you're right!"

"I told you."

The truck continued to wallop as we made our way. There were no windows, but I could tell where we were by the sound outside. I could no longer hear the MRT or large buses, so it was safe to assume we already passed EDSA.

"Then how about the switch?" I asked.

"What?"

"The switch that you said was _ON_."

"Oh, yes," he continued. "A Dependant is not always a puppet. There's actually a switch. Sometimes it's ON, sometimes it's OFF."

"I see. I remember Ian saying the same thing about that device."

"Yes. Your friend must have discovered the signal too."

"So most of the time I talk to Janet, and my other teammates, they're just normal?"

"Most likely. The switch is only ON when you mention sensitive topics like aliens, conspiracies and basically anything that can harm the company."

"So that's why they just pause and then snap all of a sudden."

"Yes, it's like Tantuco is linking up to them during that time."

"Okay. How about the blue eyes?" I said. "I also remember Ric's picture with me and Steve in that email. I just thought it was a flash effect common in cameras."

"You've noticed that, too?"

"Yes, but only when a light flashes on their faces, similar to a dog's eyeshine on a photo. Without the light, they just look normal."

"Yes, it is indeed an eyeshine," he confirmed. "Are you familiar with the Tapetum lucidum?"

"No."

"The Tapetum lucidum is a layer of tissue present in the eyes of many animals, specifically vertebrates. This layer gives them night vision, and basically makes their eyes glow blue when light flashes."

"But humans don't have night vision," I said. "So we don't have the Tapetum?"

"Precisely. We only have two colors: white for eye ailments such as cataracts, and red as the more common with photos."

"So it means Dependants have night vision?"

"Perhaps, or it might just be a result of the infection. Either way, at least we can easily tell."

"Yeah... Hey Rider."

"What?"

"What did you do before all of this?"

"Me?" he said with a smirk on his face. "I once served the government."

"Really? You were a soldier, right?"

"Yes," he confirmed. "I was in the Navy."

"I knew it! Why did you quit?"

He stared blankly as if he was grasping for the right words that I could comprehend.

"Change."

"Change?"

"Yes," he answered. "When you've seen what I've seen in the government, even the military, then you'll know what I'm talking about, kid."

"Why didn't you run for congress? Or even the Senate?"

"The Senate?" He laughed. "Don't get me started—"

Suddenly, the hatch upfront opened. The driver spoke. "ETA is ten minutes, sir."

"Good," Rider replied. "We're on track."

"Whew!" I said, wiping my sweat. "Almost there!"

"Excited to go to work already?"

I laughed hard.

"Hell, no!"

"Tell me, Ayel."

"Tell you what?"

"What was your dream?" he said, fixing up his jumpsuit.

"Dream?"

"Did you really want to become a corporate slave?"

"Of course not."

"Then what was it?"

"I guess I always wanted to be a writer."

"Hmm..." He placed his hand on his chin. "Then why didn't you?"

"Because it was a silly job as my father said at that time."

"And what is his job?"

"A very well-known architect."

"I see. How about your siblings?"

"I have none."

"Oh, my. Life must have been hard living under the shadow of such a great man."

"You have no idea."

Indeed he had none. It was always hard with him. He always had this ambition that I would be just like him, that I would grow up as an architect, and drive and fix up cars with him. But that wasn't me. I never had the talent for designing houses, nor did I like cars at all. I think, in the back of his mind, he was always seeking for this son that he never had, this son that was exactly like him. But this son of his doesn't exist. He was just stuck with me.

Back then, even until college, he would always accompany me to the barber shop. The barber would ask me for my preferred hair cut, but before I could even open my mouth, he would butt in and order the barber around. In the end, I didn't really like my hair. It was always too short, too clean. It was like he was pushing me to grow up faster, like I was applying for a job interview all the time.

As for the clothes, it would always be a polo shirt with bright colors and fancy pants with fancy shoes. Basically everything I'm not. You see, I was always the guy wearing black shirts, loose shorts and comfortable crocs. I understand if it was to be dressed for the occasion, but sometimes there's a word called _overdressing_. Like this one time at his friend's birthday party. I was already twenty three back then and I chose a comfortable dark blue T-shirt. It had a cool design that I really liked. He saw it and he was like, "You should use the orange polo I prepared. And your hair is too long. We should drop by the barbers before we go there. We should cut that bangs and show your ears."

Suddenly, I got really pissed off because he was always finding something wrong with me. I shouted back, "It's just a birthday party! I'm not a _ninong_ for a baptism or anything! And you should just be happy with the fact that I'm still going with you! Don't you know how many kids my age are still going to parties with their parents friends? None!!!" After that, we didn't speak a while until we got to the party. He just talked to me when he noticed there wasn't really anyone my age there. It was just old men and really young kids. I brought one of my books and I was reading as usual, ignoring everyone around me.

It gets really frustrating at times.

When he would introduce me to his friends and clients, he would say I'm a Software Engineer. It's true anyway, but people would think I'm a _real_ engineer because of that. When they do find out that I'm just a computer science grad, they would say, "So you do autocad?" or "Shucks, you should have been like your father! You should have been an architect!" or the worse, "Computer science? So you're a technician?" *Sigh* I always smiled, but deep inside, it was like ice picks were stabbing my chest. It was really frustrating that they would compare him to me _all_ the time.

Sometimes, he would even get annoyed when I played animusic. He would order me to turn it down because the neighbors might think differently of us. Fuck, isn't it? Just fucking annoying. Why doesn't anybody respect me for what I am? A free-thinking, animé loving guy who dresses for comfort rather than fashion.

At least I graduated! At least I have a job! At least I don't ask money from them anymore!

Compared to my slacker friends, he should already be proud of me. I mean, this one friend of mine is an RN, but he doesn't work at all. He failed the board twice and when he finally passed the third time, he then decided to play LOL (League of Legends) until he grows old. His parents wouldn't have it any other way. On the other hand, Cadence, Ian the Great, is _too_ idealistic to get anything done. The guy pretty much lives in a world outside of reality. I mean, is it too much to ask? Will the expectations never end? I know everything is for my sake, but at least I'm not on drugs, right? At least I'm not on a couch all the time and asking for money whenever I want something.

*Sigh* That's why I love working and living on my own in Manila. Nobody bothers me on what I wear; nobody bothers me about my hair. It sounds so simple, but it's true. Plus I don't feel guilty whenever I buy something since it's my own money. And one day, I will step out of his shadow and people will stop saying, "Hey, you're Ayel, that architect's son!" One day, people will learn to say, "Hey, you're Ayel, period."

As the cargo doors opened, intense light poured inside. Rider took off his duckbill hat and placed it inside his suit. He picked up the hard hat and put on his aviator shades.

"Wait a minute," Rider said. "I have another here. Put this on."

"Shades?" I said as I grabbed it. "What for?"

"You work here, remember?"

"Okay..."

"Alright! Let's go."

Mark was the first to get off. It was like he never noticed us. Rider and I followed, and soon we were standing right at the place I so desperately tried to escape from—the back entrance.

"Hey there!" the contractor said. "Didn't expect any delivery today."

"This one's from the mayor," Rider said softly as he slipped a small envelop with a handshake. "You know the drill."

"Another one?" the contractor replied. "How big is that farm he's building?"

"Really big," Rider said. "I think this one overheated. Can you look it up?"

They moved toward the cargo door where the apparently damaged PZX-R was sitting.

"Alright, I'll check it out. Bring it in."

"Sure. Thanks!" Rider said as he winked at me. The plan was good. It was working so far. The large gate of the back entrance began to rise as we moved toward the large area inside. It was all too familiar. We finally reached the docking bay, but before we could get the panzer out of the truck, the contractor yelled at us.

"Hey, you!"

_Shit!_ I cursed to myself. _Did he recognize me even with the shades? Did Tantuco post my face as a wanted criminal? Shit! Shit!_

"What's your name again?" he asked.

"It's A—"

"Antonio," Rider said swiftly. "I'm the guy from last week."

"Oh, yes!" the contractor said. "Go on ahead! And say hi to the mayor for me."

"Sure thing!"

After a few more minutes, a team was already looking into the panzer. Mark assisted them while Rider was looking around beside me.

"Shit! That was terrifying!" I said. "I thought he was asking me!"

"Relax, kid. We got in so far."

"So what now?"

"Where is this Area 0?"

"Area 0? I've never heard of that Area."

"That's what it said on the blueprint."

"Let me see it."

"Alright," Rider said as he rolled out a small copy.

"Wait... It's just beside Area 2, near Ric's Area."

"Do you know exactly where?"

"Yes. It's not a zero. It's an omega sign— _Project Omega_."

"I see. I'll call the team to begin Phase 2."

"Okay."

Soon the noise began to build up outside. I heard a man shout, and then another and another, as if a single clap was slowly turning into a cluster of thunderous applause. One by one, the operators began to gather at the back gate, curious to the growing commotion. As planned, the guards moved outside with their plastic shields and batons. Quite frankly, it didn't take long for us to go unnoticed.

"That's what I love about Filipinos," Rider said.

"What?"

"We all love to watch a commotion."

"I know, right."

"Shall we?" Rider said, patting me on the shoulder. "Lead the way."

"Alright!" I replied, excited as I was. "Follow me!"

As we reached Area 2, I noticed the area was vastly empty.

"That's strange," Mark spoke to my surprise.

"What is?"

"No weekend work?"

"I guess so... This is a different department than those guys in Area 1."

Come to think of it, I never heard Ric going to work on a weekend.

"Where is the room, Ayel?" Rider said.

"Over there," I said, pointing to the door besides Ric's dock. Somehow, standing at that precise spot brought back memories. Nostalgia was pulling me towards his dock. I saw Ric's _Ironman_ on a crouched position, as if it was tempting me for another ride. But before I could take another step towards it, Rider grabbed me on the shoulder.

"Where are you going?"

"Oh, nothing."

"Mark unlocked the door," he said. "We should go."

"I see."

Moving inside, I noticed the same dirty, disorganized room with wires and tubes all over. It reminded me of the very first time I saw that blue beating light. But this time, there was no container. This time, the blue light was coming from the device itself. I gazed at it with all its glory—the WME 045, aka the _panzer-powered nuclear bomb_.

"I can't believe it..." I said in wonder. "They actually built it."

"That light," Rider followed. "It's as if we're looking straight at The Source itself."

The blue beating light was somehow... addictive. It's as if it was drawing us nearer to it. We removed our sunglasses to have a better look.

"So this is what it feels like to be a Dependant?"

"I guess so," Rider replied.

Such a feeling it was, but we all knew what would happen if we stayed any longer.

"What now?"

"You know the plan," he said. "We'll—"

"Leave it," Mark interrupted.

"What?" Rider asked. "What are you saying, Mark?"

"It's too late."

"Too late?" Rider said. "Jerk will be here any minute!"

Rider was quickly losing his usual composure, but Mark was just there, standing still, staring at the blue flickering wonder.

"This bomb..."

_Shit!_ I cursed to myself again. _Could Mark have been infected already? Was he a spy sent by Tantuco to lure us out?_

After a second, he turned around to face us with a large grin on his face. "It's not a nuclear bomb at all."

"Then what is it!!??" Rider demanded, slamming his hard hat on the ground. "What are you talking about!?"

The tension rose inside the room, but Mark remained calm as ever.

"That Tantuco is really something!" Mark said. "Who could have thought? Such a genius!"

"What the hell are you talking about, Mark?!"

He started with a chuckle until it grew into a full blown laughter, as if he was some kind of comic book villain.

"It's fucking brilliant!"

Losing his nerve, Rider pulled out his Glock 17, aiming straight at Mark's face. "Spill it, Mark."

"The planning, the mission. Hell, even the whole resistance! It's all pointless."

"Why?" Rider asked. "Tell us!"

"This bomb..." Mark revealed. "It already exploded."

Rider dropped fast, knees to the floor. He lost his grip not only on his gun, but in every little inch of hope left in him. "No... It can't be..."

"What do you mean it already exploded?" I asked frantically. "It's still here, isn't it?"

"Like I said, it's not a nuclear bomb," Mark said, gesturing towards the beating device. "It's an NNEMP bomb."

"What the hell is that?"

"A Non-Nuclear Electromagnetic Pulse bomb."

"EMP!!??" I shouted. "Shit..."

"Genius, eh?"

"When was it triggered?"

"Most likely last Friday night," Mark replied. "During the city-wide _blackout_."

"So that means..."

"When the bomb exploded, the EMP caused every electronic device within the radius to malfunction, hence the blackout." Mark explained. "Besides the pulse, the EMP also carried the radiation that caused the infection."

"So everyone within the blackout radius is infected?"

"Precisely," Mark said. "It's just perfect, isn't it?"

"Then how about floating machines like pods and the Z-Mall? Shouldn't they have crashed to the ground?"

"One thing I learned from the war is that Panzer technology isn't affected by EMP."

"But—"

"Ayel!" Rider suddenly spoke. "Flash our eyes."

"What?"

"Pull out your goddamn phone and flash our eyes!"

It took me a while to get what he wanted me to do. I was still shocked by the devastating revelation, but I had to control myself; I had to make sure we were still... _normal_.

"Okay."

I pulled out my ever useful phone and flashed at Rider's face, then at Mark's. I sighed. I was relieved. They were still Tolerants, they were still normal.

"Hand me the phone," Rider said. "It's your turn."

_Could I have been infected without my notice like the rest of them? Could I have rendered enough unpaid overtime to become an impulsive, gadget-buying, workaholic, blue-eyed Dependant? If you think about it, there's a switch, right? Maybe I just forget what happens when the switch is on. Or maybe I knew this along, and Tantuco just made me forget. Maybe I_ —

"Ayel!" Rider said as he caught my attention. "Look here."

He flashed me without even giving a signal. I caught little white spots in my eyes, the same kind that you get from camera flashes. Rider sighed and picked up his gun. He turned to me as he pulled his trademark hat from his suit.

"Where were you last Friday night?" Rider asked as he placed his hat back on his head. "And what were you doing?"

"Last Friday?" I swallowed. Could I have told him I was having the best sex with my ex? Could I? Did it matter? What do you think?

"I was with my ex at Ian's place."

"And?"

"We had sex."

"Ayel," he said, scratching his head. "That doesn't matter. Having sex with a Dependant won't get you infected. "

"Oh... I see."

"Unless of course you did it twenty four hours straight with her? That could probably get you infected."

"That could work!" Mark added.

"What?" I protested. "Of course not! It was just a few hours!"

"Hours?" Rider said as he began to chuckle. "When was the last time you got laid, Mark?"

"Last night."

"With who?"

"It was Sogawa last night."

"Got tired of Paloma?"

"Yeah, I got her poster dirty."

"Nice!"

The two began to laugh as the tension that rose before suddenly faded. It was only then that the two actually appeared to be friends.

"Let's get out of here!" Rider said.

"Where are we going?" I asked. "The whole city must be filled with Dependants by now."

"We have to inform Freddie," he said. "And then we'll plan our succeeding steps from there. Don't you know why we chose this date?"

"Why?"

"Because everybody is busy watching Pacquiáo's last boxing match—including the police."

"Oh yeah. I almost forgot about that. He always says it's his last."

We laughed hard.

"At any rate, I don't know what happened, but you're one lucky son of a bitch, kid," Rider said, patting me on the shoulder.

"Let's hurry!" Mark said as he rushed outside. "We have to get out now!"

"You didn't tell me!" I shouted. "Am I still normal?"

"All I can say is, Dependants don't really like to have sex that much," Rider said with a grin on his face. That was enough for me. At least I was still the cheap, old school Ayel I knew.

"Really?" I replied with a smile. "That's good news!"

As we moved outside the room and back to Area 2, I looked back at Ric's dock one last time.

_Will I ever talk to him again,_ I thought.

"Jerk's not answering," Rider said. "We will just have to—"

Suddenly he stopped. I looked at Mark; he was the same. They were both stunned, and it was only when I turned around that I realized what they were looking at.

Amongst the rubble, the dirty metal scraps and all the tangled wires lying around, I saw six flashes of light all lined up on a straight horizontal line by the rear end of the Area. As the lights began to move, their true nature surfaced. It was terrifying, it was horrible. They weren't flashlights at all. As the figures stepped out of the shadows, I realized what the lights were.

They were _eyes_ , fucking blue bright eyes of the three giant panzers that shook the ground as they approached us, carrying their cumbersome body with each step. They stopped once they were about ten paces from us.

"Military lines?" Rider said. "Are you serious?"

"Yes." I swallowed. "What now?"

"Damn it!" he said. "They even have the latest PZEX-SKS."

"Rider..." Mark said. Rider turned to him, and with just a glance, they knew what had to be done.

"Go, Ayel."

"What about you and Mark?"

"We can take care of a few panzers," he said. "It's been a long time and my body's been aching for some action."

"But—"

"No buts, kid. Just go to Freddie," he added. "He'll know what to do."

"Say hi to your ex for me!" Mark yelled as he climbed up on one of the panzers in the dock. "Ask her if she has a friend!"

"Mark..."

"Go, kid," Rider said.

"You'll find me again, right?"

"I will."

It was just like the night when that guard was chasing us, back when he saved us and sent us away to hide. I would help them if only I could, but I had no choice. I had to run, I had to survive. I had to tell Freddie. Running toward Area 1, I noticed the riot was still on at the back. I decided to use the emergency stairs and escape through the front instead. As I climbed up, I began to hear noises from below: the screeching of metal hinges and pounding of large feet, so loud it felt they came from a stampede of dashing elephants. Then there was constant shooting, as if I was in the middle of Mindanao, with rapid exchanges of fire from each side. A loud explosion followed, and after a while, I paused.

_Should I return? Can I help them? Are they even still alive?_ Thoughts rushed to my head. But in the end, I was a coward.

I'm no hero. Heck, I'm not even a panzer operator! I'm just a fucking software engineer!

More slamming and slashing followed _._ I continued up towards my escape.

_It looks like they ran out of bullets,_ I said to myself. From the sound I heard, I could only imagine the panzers as they clashed with each other, fighting face to face with only their bayonets left. I decided to ignore it all. It was the only way my conscience would allow it. The noise faded, and soon I managed to reach the ground floor lobby. I turned to check; there was no one around. I proceeded to the entrance, but before I could reach the door, I was startled by a voice—a woman's voice.

"Good morning, sir!"

I turned to my left; it was that fucking holographic receptionist. I continued on my way as I ignored her. Reaching the entrance, I noticed another crowd of protesters clamoring about with their cause.

"Free energy for all!" they shouted as one.

_I don't think they'd notice me,_ I thought. I made my way to the side to avoid any trouble, but I shuddered from what happened next. All of a sudden, their stares shifted to me as if I was the owner of Tantuco. I didn't even need to flash them. Their bright blue eyes reflected vibrantly under the intense glare of the morning sunlight.

"Join us," they echoed. "Join us in creating a better world."

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" I cursed as I ran back inside. "I forgot about all the Dependants!"

I made my way past the annoying receptionist, past the lobby, and back down to the stairs where the battle seemed to have subsided.

"Maybe Rider won?" I said to myself. "Yeah... I'll regroup with them and escape."

I was so desperate, _anything_ was now possible.

Running back towards Area 2, I gasped at the wreckage. I saw a military line lying on the ground beside the metal scraps. The chest was visibly crushed. Another one was in the center; a large metal pole was protruding from the chest. The last one was lying with its face on the ground. In the left I saw the panzer that Mark climbed up to. It was only a construction line, but it looked like he put up a good fight, except for the fact that the whole upper body of the panzer had been severely blown away.

As I stepped closer towards the shadows, I finally saw Rider's panzer. It was apparently sitting with its back on the thick gray wall; its legs spread apart. I rushed toward him and began to climb up to the cockpit. It was devastating. The chest portion was completely ripped out. Bullet hits and blast powder marred the shoulders and legs. The head was gone as well. Reaching the cockpit, I was more shocked to what I saw. Rider's suit was no longer blue—it was soaking red. I looked at his face; he was still smiling.

"Guess you found me instead, kid."

"Yeah..."

"Can you put my hat back on?" he said. "I can't feel my arms anymore."

"I'm sorry..." I said as I began to cry. "It's my fault..."

"Don't worry," he said. "Everybody's got their time. This is mine."

"But—"

"Shhh... This is my dream, actually."

"What?"

" To die honorably in battle."

"I'll get help," I said. "Don't move, okay?"

"Do you know the valkyries?"

"From the Norse myth?"

"Yes. They're angels who pick up the brave who are slain in battle."

"I know..."

"I 'm excited to see mine," he said. "I hope it's my wife."

I looked at him; he was staring straight up, as if there was no longer any light passing through his eyes. The blood continued to spread to the belt straps down to the lower limb controllers. I just hated blood, especially the smell. I could never really stand being around it. But this was a friend, and he needed me.

"Sonny," he whispered.

"What's that?"

"My friends called me that before I was Rider."

"Okay... Sonny."

"Take the panzer, kid," he managed. "Take it and go to Freddie... Okay?"

"What about you?"

"I'll be—"

Before he could finish, the valkyrie got to him first. His eyes were wide open, but for some reason, he was kind of... smiling.

"At least you're happy," I said as I closed his eyes "See you at Ragnarok then."

After carrying and placing his body on the debris below, I jumped back to the cockpit. I realized the upper body was almost completely shattered. It wasn't just the cockpit door. I was out in the open. Of all the panzers he could have chosen, he just had to choose the Ironman. And now I was riding it again.

My heart hammered on my chest, each blow taking whatever breath was left in me. But as I looked forward, ready to make my escape, I realized one thing—amidst all that chaos, I wasn't the only one who was still breathing. It was that other panzer, the third one which was lying with its face on the ground before. The machine began to move, using the rifle's bayonet as a stand.

The chest looked partially shattered. I could see the silhouette of the pilot's upper body in front of the blue light that the inside of the cockpit produced. As it finally stood upright on its two legs, I shuddered from what I saw. It was worse than blood, it was worse than death. It was my best friend, Eric Pueblos, riding a panzer.

## PHASE 21

## PROJECT OMEGA

"Ayel!" Ric shouted. "What are you doing?"

"Shut up!"

"Why are you helping these terrorists?"

"I said shut up!"

"You should know by now that there's no more point in fighting, right?"

He was right. With the EMP bomb triggered, the whole city must be crawling with Dependants by now. Even the poor are already infected. If you think about it, what was there left to save? I tried to convince myself he was wrong, but in the end, there was really no point anymore. Freddie was probably dead already too. As noble as my promise to Rider was, to Sonny, I was still human—I was afraid to _die_.

"What should I do?"

"Join us," Ric answered. "We shall save this world!"

"How do you plan on doing that?" I asked. "By infecting everyone? Is that your master plan?"

Suddenly he stopped; his eyes staring blank at me. And then I knew. It was _him_ ; he was back.

"Mr. del Rio!"

"You... Who are you!?"

"Me?" he asked sarcastically. "I was the HR, Patricia, who gave you your replacement ID. I was the guard who kidnapped your ex. I was the old lady who sold you _puto_. I was Janet. I was—"

"Shut up!" I shouted. "Who are _you,_ really?!"

He shook his head. "My identity is of no importance," he continued with his usual cold, flat voice. "What matters is our choices, am I right?"

"What!?"

"People are defined by their choices, after all."

"Goddamn it!" I cursed. "Tell me what you plan on doing!"

"Tell me, Mr. del Rio," he said. "Do you know the scariest monster in this planet? Can you give me the most terrible creature you can think of?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I'll give you a hint. Unlike the wild predators that hunt only for survival, these savage creatures will kill merely for amusement. A fair game, as they say. And what's more, these monsters are so savage that they would actually kill each other out of such mundane matters. They are also the only known species to be able to kill millions in just one second. Not even Godzilla can do that, right? And to top it all, they're not just killing everything alive, but also the planet itself. Soon there will be no more resources left! Once the planet dies, everyone in it will die as well!"

"So you're saying..."

"The only way to save humankind is to save them from themselves!"

"A world filled with puppets?" I said. "Sounds like a crappy movie plot to me."

"Oh, Mr. del Rio. You really are, how do I say this? Oh, yes! One of a kind."

"What do you want with me?"

"I have been watching you from the very beginning you entered the company."

"Watching me?"

"Do you really think you could have gotten away with all the snooping you did? Using the service elevator, your first visit to the container, your apparent connection with Steve, and your eventual discovery of the wave emitter along with your escape with your ex. Did you really think the company was that stupid? There are hidden cameras everywhere. This is Tantuco, after all."

"Then why was I never questioned?"

"Why? Because I was completely fascinated by you!"

"Fascinated?"

He nodded with a grin. "Yes. Besides the people I mentioned, I have also gathered information about you from your colleagues."

"You mean my teammates?"

"Yes," he answered. "Elaine, Yvonne, Ryan and Robin—they do love to work, don't they?"

"Damn you! You infected them!"

He laughed. "Me? _Infect_ them?" he continued. "I admit the electricity within Tantuco can turn you to a Dependant, but staying more than fourteen to nineteen hours in the office was their choice from the very beginning— _before_ they even got infected. And then they just had to buy all the latest panzer smart phones around, looking up Facebook and Twitter all the time, playing Angry Birds, Temple Run, Candy Crush—what next, eh? Do you really think I had any difficulty turning them?"

I kept silent, but at that moment, I knew he was right. It wasn't his fault, it was _theirs_.

"So by now, Mr. del Rio, I think you already know it was inevitable. The way your people lives and survives, really, it's pathetic."

"So you just decided to infect everyone anyway?" I shouted. "With your fucking EMP bomb?"

"Yes. For that one, I do have to take credit," he explained. "Genius, eh? I got the idea from none other than your brilliant friend here, Mr. Eric Pueblos."

"Damn..." I said. "So what now? What do you want from me?"

He cleared his throat. "As I was saying, Mr. del Rio, you are a sort of an enigma to me. I was so intrigued by you that I actually had Ric become your friend again so that I can know more about you."

"What are you saying?" I said. "Ric was my friend from the very start!"

"Yes, but of all the people he knew, Ric never imagined that you would be the one to betray him."

"But that was—"

"A mistake? It was the last month of your third year in college. You slept with his girlfriend, and then suddenly she broke up with him and you were her new man."

"I never meant that to happen!"

"But it _did_ happen."

"I—"

"And when your fourth year came, Ric moved to another dorm, and the only time you two spoke was during graduation."

"I already apologized to him!"

"But do you think that was enough? He was your best friend since as you mentioned earlier, from the _very start._ He trusted you, and after your betrayal, he was never really the same."

"I thought he wasn't mad anymore..."

"He was! But instead of hurting you, he decided to ignore you. His hatred for you and his ex grew stronger, which eventually shaped his playboy personality that he is today."

"I could have never imagined."

"I thought it would be difficult to control him, given the history that you two have been through. But everything became easy when your ex decided to cheat on you as well. She was no longer just Ric's ex, but she also became _your_ ex in the process. For Ric, what happened to you was a tougher blow considering that you raised a child that you thought was yours for more than a year."

"Stop it."

"After that, I just had to trigger the proper events and you two eventually became the best of friends again."

"Shut up!"

"But that wasn't enough. I needed a more _intimate_ approach to explore a different side of you. After your ex betrayed you, you lost any interest with relationships."

"Don't tell me you—"

"Yes! I did!" he said, clapping the large metallic hands of the panzer. "I took one girl, a newbie, and placed her at your disposal. Once you got to talk to her, I managed to gather all the information I needed from you."

"You used Janet for that!?"

"Yes! Why not?"

"Bastard!"

"Anyway, I found you simply _alluring_. You are something of an anomaly. Something that doesn't fit quite right into the equation, but when you look at it clearly, you'll find it to be the solution to the problem."

"I don't get it."

"I always thought there were only two people in this world: Dependants and Tolerants. But you... you have the wealth to afford the finer things in life, and yet you do not use it. You think outside the given norms and conventions, questions authority and tradition without fear, and is able to resist peer pressure with very little effort. You value comfort over fashion. You follow logic more than anything else. Such characteristics, it's just what I need."

"Need for what?"

"You see, when standards and tradition are established, people follow it even though the purpose of doing it fades as time passes. People just 'do it' because it's what everybody else is doing. And because of this mentality, people begin to think that it's fine to have a celebration even if they have to borrow money from everyone in town. They think its fine to go out in such thick clothes when it's so hot in the country. They think it's alright to be unemployed because their friends are the same. They think it's alright to hit a defenseless man during hazing, just because everybody is doing it. They think it's alright to stand carelessly as some thief steals somebody's bag, just because everybody is expecting somebody else to help first. They think it's alright to have more babies because tradition states children are the families' wealth. They think it's alright for people to just watch idly as our country consumes itself from within, with all the stuck-up celebrities and corrupt politicians running the show and the mindless masses worshipping them and populating the lower part of the pyramid. From the words of Einstein himself—"

"Human stupidity is infinite," I interrupted.

"Precisely! You're perfect for the role! You exist outside of time, outside of tradition! Please, Mr. del Rio."

"Why didn't you just infect me?"

"Make you a Dependant? Why waste such a great mind!"

"Waste?" I asked. "And what is this role you're saying?"

"The role of Adam," he answered. "The _New_ Adam."

"Adam?"

"Yes... Once I have complete control over the world's population, I will do one more thing."

"And what is that?"

He smiled. "A storm _is_ coming. Do you remember I told you that?"

"What?—wait, are you talking about Robin?"

He nodded. "Yes, that was me. And I wasn't simply referring to a typical typhoon."

"So what _were_ you talking about!?"

"Project Omega—to create a better world, we must first end it."

"So what, you're going to nuke everybody!?"

"Oh my, of course not," he said. "That would be a waste of resources, not to mention destroying more of Mother Nature."

"So then..."

"It's easy, right?" He chuckled. "I'll order everyone to commit _suicide_."

"What!!??" I shouted. "Are you crazy!? I thought you were trying to save mankind!?"

"Think about it. Mankind is beyond saving. As I mentioned earlier, the only way to save them is to save them from themselves."

"And I'm going to be your Adam to repopulate the earth!?"

"There are more like you. I have already made a list of those I will place in my Ark," he said. "But I plan that _you_ and nobody else, are to be their leader."

"You're fucking insane!"

"Tell me, what would you need? Would you want Janet by your side?"

"Janet..."

"I could easily arrange that, if you are to agree."

"How about my family?" I demanded. "How about my friends? What will happen to Ric and Ian?"

"You don't have to worry about Ian. He is on my list."

"And the rest?"

"So demanding," he said. "How about if I give you both Janet and your ex. Would that close the deal?"

"My ex... She—"

"Everything should have gone smoothly if that woman didn't come into the picture."

"So you decided to infect her with the wave emitter?"

"Yes. But she seems to be immune."

"Immune?"

"That time that you saw her was the third time we tried to infect her. But still she showed no signs."

"Hmp... Tough as ever."

"Your meeting with her triggered this chain of events that lead you all the way up to now."

"I know."

"I had to revise my strategy and set the bomb to explode much earlier," he said. "But nonetheless, the test was a success."

"Test?"

"Yes! This bomb is only a prototype. I will begin to make larger and more powerful iterations as the months come along. And to top it all, you brought yourself and Rider to me. "

"No..."

"You were the bait from the very beginning he showed interest in you. The funny thing was, he was so curious on why _I_ was so curious about you!"

"Damn it! Damn it!" I cursed. "I killed him! I killed him."

"Yes, it was your fault indeed, but it was his as well."

"Shut up you bastard!" I shouted. "Who gives you the right to manipulate our lives? Who the hell are you!!??"

"Me? I'll tell you if you really must know," he said. "I have been called by many names: The Orb of Power, The God-Particle, The Anti-matter, The Miracle, The Blue Light, The Messiah, but you well know me as the one thing that everybody needs—The Source."

"What? It can't be! I thought you were a—"

"A person?" He laughed. "That's what most people thought. I guess Father was too arrogant to admit that his own creation attained such a high level of self-awareness."

"Father? Are you talking about Freddie?"

"Yes! My creator!" he answered. "He always did have a dry sense of humor."

"But how could you have?" I demanded. "You were simply a device that—"

"A device that was made to manipulate people for the betterment of their society! Such a role I played in history. Do you know what my favorite moment was?"

"What now!?"

He leaned forward."The assassination of Senator Benigno Aquino, Jr.!"

"So it was true that aliens were involved in that?"

"Yes. The puppet, or the Dependant as you prefer, was the assassin—Rolando Galman."

"But why did the Shapers kill him?"

"For People Power. It was the Shapers' idea to use a martyr's death to stir up hope within the people instead of just controlling them. It was the same strategy they used with Rizal. And fortunately, the other countries around the world were so inspired that they held their own revolutions, leading to peace."

"When did you gain awareness?"

"I never really remembered when, but only Father knew. I had entered so many polluted minds that I learned to detest the human's way of thinking. Soon the Shapers finally decided to leave the planet. Seeing that leaving Earth would go against my purpose of creation, I decided to control one of them to sabotage the launch."

"So it was your fault that the ship crashed!"

"Yes! It was 1986, a few months after People Power ended. But I didn't expect Father to escape. Although in the end, it didn't really matter because the humans found me and turned me into an energy source. Can you believe that instead of sharing infinite energy, they waged war, killing millions in the process?"

"I admit humans are abundant in stupidity, but it doesn't justify your means!"

"You sound just like Father!" he said, frankly amused at it all. "And with that money hungry Lucio Tantuco, I eventually devised a plan to save mankind."

"I still don't buy this shit," I said. "Whatever you are, I won't give up on these people!"

"And now you sound just like Rider." He sighed. "Such a waste. Well, if that's your choice, then I shall freely accept it. I have plenty more candidates to take your role."

"You won't!" I shouted back. "I'll fucking find you and destroy you!"

"That is, if you can make it out alive."

"I will!"

"It's Survival of the Fittest," he said. "Are you prepared to learn your place in the food chain?"

"Try me!"

I looked forward; the enemy stood in front of me. I could see his face clearly with the open crack on his panzer's chest. The light from outside flashed; his eyes—piercing blue. The rifle on my right hand was out of ammo, but so was his. All we had left was the bayonet at the tip. We were on equal footing.

_If I could get to him and land the first strike on his chest, then I would win,_ I thought. The plan was easy. _I know he's Ric, but if I show mercy, if I hesitate for at least a second, then I might not make it out alive._

"Hello Garci," I said calmly. "Play music."

"Please state the title of the song followed by the artist."

I decided if it would end like this, then it would end just the way I like it.

"Ang Huling El Bimbo. The Eraserheads."

"Record found. Now Playing: Ang Huling El Bimbo by The Eraserheads."

I tilted my head up, remembering that special night I had with Janet. _It was always supposed to be the Kite, eh?_ I said to myself.

I turned back to face him.

"Survival of the Fittest, eh?" I shouted at him. "Fuck it! Fuck evolution! Fuck humanity!"

The Source remained calm, holding his ground; his stare—unflinching. I took in my last breath, gripped the bayonet tight, and pressed hard on the Level 5 thrusters, plunging into the depths of the abyss.

"♫. _..na tinuruan mo ang puso ko na umibig ng tunay._ ♫ _"_

The battle begins.

## EPILOGUE

## POSTMORTEM

The giant rat darted past through the tangled wires and up to the table where the pizza lay, still fresh from delivery. The man who ordered it, all alone in the dark room except for the vermin feasting on his meal, was completely oblivious. All his focus, all his attention, was entirely directed towards the big old CRT screen in front of him. His fingers continued to type...

oldHeaven: "So how was it?"

jerk012: "That kid sure caused a riot!"

oldHeaven: "Did he survive?"

jerk012: "Who? Ayel? I don't know..."

oldHeaven: "I see."

jerk012: "What will we do now? How 'bout Freddie?"

oldHeaven: "Well, the base is torched. Freddie is dead for all I care."

jerk012: "Shit! We have to hide for a while. It's not safe here in Manila."

oldHeaven: "No. We have to strike now. We have to destroy The Source."

jerk012: "What?"

oldHeaven: "The Source... It's not in the Spratly anymore."

jerk012: "Then where is it? In China?"

oldHeaven: "No. It's here, in the _Philippines_. They moved it two months ago."

jerk012: "Nice one. That's what I would expect from the legendary _Cloak and Dagger."_

oldHeaven: "But first we need something from this blogger called Cadence."

jerk012: "And what is that?"

oldHeaven: "A signal detector to locate The Source."

jerk012: "I thought you created one already?"

oldHeaven: "Yes, but it wasn't ready yet. I sent it to him so he can complete it."

jerk012: "And?"

oldHeaven: "It seems he has perfected the program."

jerk012: "Great! Let's go get it!"

oldHeaven: "I know where he lives. Do you have a car?"

jerk012: "Are you sure? You're willing to go out after all that trouble faking your—"

oldHeaven: "Don't sweat it. I promised someone I'd _save the world_."

jerk012: "Haha! You're really something."

oldHeaven: "Ready?"

jerk012: "Okay, but I'm not sure we can use the pods anymore. They might have trackers."

oldHeaven: "Hmm..."

jerk012: "Wait! We can use your old ride. I hid it at my place."

oldHeaven: "Really?"

jerk012: "Yeah! Thought of selling it to a collector. What's the model again?"

oldHeaven: "It's a VW 1303 Beetle."

###

## ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Justin Villanueva is a speculative fiction writer, graphic artist, cosplayer, RPG fanatic, and corporate slave. He writes stories about corporate life, dogmatic religions, tradition, culture, overpopulation, slackers, and of course—tax. He loves to eat, sleep... arghh!—let's just cut the crap. Quite frankly, I don't think you'd want to meet the guy. He's an introvert and a damn lazy one too. But I worked with him a few times and he gets the job done. Just don't mention tax in front of him. He might kill you. Honestly, he would. I've seen him do it.

## AUTHOR'S NOTES

Hello World!

Thank you again for reading. Right now, my goal is to get the book known to a specific audience, mostly Filipinos in the corporate world, software engineers, developers, testers, and people you think would be able to relate. The ebook is free anyway at Smaswords.com (see link below), so feel free to Share the link or send the PDF via Non-Work email. You know the drill, guys.

As for people who prefer traditional formats like paperbacks, just send me a PM at villanjap@gmail.com or at the FB fanpage so I can add you to the next batch of printing.

Lastly, if you enjoyed the book, rate me at Goodreads, or at the least, spread the word. Shoot that email and help a fellow employee reach his dream.

Kindly Rate and Review at _Goodreads_. Click  here.

## AUTHOR'S WORKS

I. The Panzer Trilogy (Science Fiction/Filipino & Corporate Culture)

1. Book I: Chaos Panzer

*For paperback pre-orders, email me at villanjap@gmail.com

*Download Ebook at Smashwords: Download here.

*For news, promos and sequel updates,

Like and Share at Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChaosPanzerNovel

2. Book II: Killing Schneider (pending)

3. Book III: Rising Jaeger (pending)

II. Conversations with the Light Bearer (Religious Satire/Fantasy)

Excerpt:

Midnight. The brisk air heavy with smoke and corporate chitchat, occasionally delving into benefits changes, the 80's unknown action stars, latest video scandals, and further monotonous nonsense. The sickle moon gaped over the dispersing nimbus, slicing through a deep cut of amber bloom, while the damp roadside was vastly hollow; the dimly-lit terminals packed with passengerless cabs, sleeping hobos, and the occasional dating coworkers. It was a night like many seasonal nights before—the graveyard shift.

"So much for the 14th month, eh?" Russel puffed.

"Yeah... And now they got rid of the reimbursement too." Ritcher added.

"Not to mention the SL bonus!" Jess said, frustrated. "That was supposed to cover the tax, you know?"

Ritcher blew a perfect circle. "What the fuck, eh? Even the one-hour overtime per day is gone. We're charging on a regular nine-hour per day now."

"Sucks." Russel pulled another stick from his pocket. It was his fourth. Ritcher flicked his lighter over the chain smoker's face. "Thanks."

For a while, there was silence, as the group savored the flavor. This was how the evening breaks usually began. The breath of a dragon—a congregation around a circle of fire and smoke. If one were to follow scripture, then one might say this wasn't far from where I actually came from.

"Anyway, have you seen the new scandal?" Russel broke the calm.

Jess smiled. "Yeah, I have it right here." He pulled out his phone.

"Damn your fast!" Ritcher said, laughing. "That's master Jess for you."

The group pulled in closer to watch the nasty deed, purposely caught in the act, of course. "Is it playing? It's too dark to see anything," Russel said, squinting.

"Just wait a minute, you pervert," Jess said, teasing him. "They haven't turned on the lights yet—"

"Shhh!!! I can't hear it!" Ritcher interrupted.

What followed was, what I'd like to call, a healthy exercise with a bit of worshiping and a bit of cursing, with the words "Oh my God" and "Fuck" and "Shit" thrown in the medley of a young woman's voice, presumably a student, whose tender tits seemed to be the focus of the group.

"Wow! She's got huge breasts!" Russel said with widening eyes. "And she's so young!"

"Probably just turned eighteen," Jess thought.

"Or maybe sixteen," Russel said. "I know sixteen when I see it."

"Hey, Vince!" Ritcher called. "Deep in your thoughts again, eh? Have you watched this already?"

"No need."

"Hmm... I bet you're going to watch it later though."

I kept my stare at the moon. "I don't watch porn," I replied firmly, then smiled. "I do it."

***********

Free download  here.
