REYNARD

"THEY HAD it coming," I muttered before tossing the latest release of The Herald aside. Tumayo ako at ipinagpatuloy ang pagpa-pack ng school supplies na ipinapa-prepare para sa isang donation drive. We were almost done with the task so I got the time to goof around.

Grabe, ang sakit na ng balakang ko! I would need a relaxing back massage.

"Bakit basta-basta mo itinatapon 'yan?" tanong ni Michelangelo sabay pulot sa diyaryo. He spread it in front of him, then his eyebrows furrowed. What caught my attention must have also caught his.

"Mas nagiging exciting na ang politika sa uni natin," I said with a smirk, lifting the last remaining bags of supplies from the floor to the table. "Do you think they deserve to be impeached? The president and the VP, I mean?"

"I don't care about the VP." He gritted his teeth, revealing the fangs of a disgraced tiger. Baka bigla niya akong kagatin! "But that Priam Torres? He surely deserves it. May atraso pa siya sa 'kin."

"Dahil ba sa ex mo?"

"Because of him, I was humiliated in the entire school. Dahil sa kaniya kaya ako nandito."

In the president's defense, Michelangelo brought this upon himself. Kung may dapat siyang sisihin, walang iba kundi ang sarili niya. But it was much easier and more convenient to blame other people for one's own misfortune.

"I also have a score to settle with him." I sat on the edge of the table, my palms flat on the surface. "If it weren't for him and his council, I wouldn't be here."

Umangat ang isa niyang kilay, nagtatakang bumaling ng tingin sa direksiyon ko. "I thought you're here because you triggered the fire alarm in your office?"

"That's just me throwing tantrums!" I threw my hands in the air. "Kung hindi ako napahiya ro'n sa explosive exclusive expose ko, hindi ako pagagalitan ng editors ko. Kung hindi ako pinagsabihan ng editors ko, hindi ko maiisipang laruin ang fire alarm. 'Tapos na-demote pa ako from USC beat to LEXECOM beat. It's all Priam's fault—he and his underlings."

Uttering those words didn't sit well with me. As much as possible, I didn't want to lie or exaggerate my feelings. I was a bit upset about the first part, but not the rest—also, not at Priam, but at Castiel. When it came to undercover missions, I had to say the stuff that my target wanted to hear to win their trust.

"Baka naka-karma na sila ngayon." Nilamukos ng kasama ko ang diyaryo at shinoot sa trash bin na nasa sulok. Hindi na ako nagtatakang siya ang team captain ng basketball team kasi pumasok ang binilog niyang diyaryo. Pero sayang ang mga papel. Sayang ang punong pinutol para doon. Oh, well. "Mabuti't nandiyan si 'Ric para turuan ng leksiyon ang gagong 'yon."

"Ric?" My left eyebrow inched upward.

"Si Alaric," paglilinaw niya. "We can just grab a bucket of popcorn and watch them squirm."

"Meh." I scoffed as I got to my feet. "I wanna be part of the audience. Lucky me, I have a front-row seat to watch history unfold at ElyU. I hope this 'Ric will perform well."

"'Ric doesn't disappoint." His lips twisted into a smirk, but it quickly faded. "Except for one time. But that was years ago. He's more focused now, more dangerous. He's good at what he does when he puts his mind to it."

"Huh?" I turned to him. "What happened back then?"

"Did you know that he was part of our basketball team way back in senior high?" Michelangelo revealed. Pinulot niya ang isa pang nakakalat na papel sa sahig, nilamukos 'yon, at shinoot sa trash bin. Pumasok na naman. "Kaso iniwan niya ako sa ere no'ng nag-quit siya. His grandpa didn't want him wasting his time in basketball. So he focused on being a student-leader, which was said to be more beneficial to him in the long run."

Now that's interesting angle.

"Anyway!" I wiped my hands and grabbed my bag. "Kailangan ko nang umalis. Showing na ang much-anticipated impeachment trial of the decade. May your friend 'Ric give us the entertainment we deserve."

"He will. I wish I could watch him destroy them, pero may basketball practice pala kami mamaya. The collegiate tournament is fast approaching."

"Ciao!" I waved at him before exiting the room. Finally, my community service duty was over for today. I wasn't halfway through it yet, but that's okay! The longer I stayed here, the more pieces of information I could get.

Good news? Michelangelo confirmed to me that he and Alaric weren't just collegemates. They had known each other way back in senior high, which was what? Four to five years ago. I didn't wanna jump to any conclusions, but if they're tight, Castiel's theory might hold some water. But I needed to know more.

In ten minutes, I arrived at the conference room in the admin building. This area was intended for the Legislative-Executive Committee or LEXECOM. If you'd been reading my articles or any article of The Herald, you'd know by now that the said committee is composed of nine college student councils' chairpersons and the vice president of the University Student Council acting as the presiding officer. In the center of the room was a decagonal table where they sat around. At the rear part was the gallery where reporters like me could watch, take notes, write articles, and even set up a camera for broadcast or recording.

Kumpara sa huling bisita ko rito, ramdam ang tensiyon sa ere. Something historic could start here anyway. Present ang news writers ng bawat student publication. Present din mga radio reporters na magbo-broadcast ng live feed ng session. The Herald even sent their television crew to catch everything on camera. This is definitely one for the books.

"Hey," bati ko pag-upo sa tabi ni Ambrielle. Tutok siya sa pagta-type sa laptop, hindi na nagawang humarap sa 'kin. I covered her screen with my hand, forcing her to slap it away. "Naligaw ka yata ng assignment, ah? What are you doing here?"

Lumingon na siya sa direksyon ko. "We're talking about impeachment here. That involves the USC. Besides, merong isang USC officer na pumunta rito para mag-observe." Ngumuso siya sa kabilang row. There I found the cunning chief-of-staff.

What's he doing here too? It's unusual for a USC officer—aside from the vice president—to be present. The mere fact that he's here meant the matter was serious. Mukhang bothered siya sa kalalabasan ng session lalo na't dineclare na ni Alaric na magpa-file na 'to ng complaint. Or maybe he was so bored in their office that he decided to drop by and watch some drama.

"Looks like the USC is scared shitless that one of them even went here," I muttered, eyeing the chief-of-staff intently. His face was twitching and his hand was clawing his left leg as if he was in pain.

"Rowan said otherwise." Ambrielle glanced sideways at me. "But of course, they have to project strength and the image of being unbothered. Politics is about appearances, even on a collegiate level."

I chuckled. Let's see if Castiel can remain calm throughout this session. If he was the type of person that I thought he was, he must have done everything to ensure that the complaint would be dead on arrival.

USC Vice President Valeria Encarnacion roamed her eyes around the conference table. Walo na silang nakapalibot doon, kulang pa ng dalawa. Ang ila'y nakaupo na habang ang iba'y nakatayo. "We're about to start today's committee meeting. I advise the chairpersons to settle down and the gallery to observe silence. Thank you."

Nagsiayos na ng upo ang bawat tao sa conference room. Both Alaric and Castiel had smug looks on their faces. If they were the players here and everyone else—even me!—was a pawn, both must be confident that the outcome would be favorable to them. Pero sino sa kanila ang mas mananaig?

"Let the show begin," I whispered as I took out my notepad and pen.

"I will now call the roll," Valeria announced. "Avrille Mae Padilla of the College of Allied Medical Professions?"

"Present."

"Antoinette Santibañez of the College of Arts and Sciences?"

There was silence. Nabaling ang tingin ng halos lahat sa isa sa dalawang bakanteng upuan. Someone was supposed to be sitting there by now, but she wasn't. A chairperson being absent was strange given the importance of today's session.

"Antoinette Santibañez?"

The other two chairpersons who belonged to the same party as Antoinette exchanged nervous glances. Something's not right here. Maybe she was just late? Baka biglang sumakit ang tiyan niya at kinailangang mag-CR o baka nadulas siya sa hallway habang papunta rito. The list of possibilities was endless.

"Alaric Esteban of the College of Business and Accountancy?"

"Present."

"Chevy Serrano of the College of Computer Studies?"

Then there was another couple of beats of silence. This time, everyone's attention turned to the second vacant seat at the table. The person who was supposed to be sitting there wasn't present either.

"Jaeger Estrada of the College of Criminal Justice Education?"

"Present."

"Eamon Alfonso of the College of Engineering and Architecture?"

"Present."

"Eleanor Dominguez of the College of Education?"

"Present."

"Felicity David of the College of Fine Arts and Design?"

"Present."

"Owen Navarro of the College of Nursing?"

"Present."

"Antoinette and Chevy seem to be absent for today's session." Valeria shifted her gaze from one vacant seat to the other. "Do we know if they're going to attend or not?"

"Madam Chair, if I may?" Alaric raised his right hand and moved the microphone closer to his lips.

"The chairperson from CBA is recognized."

"As of yesterday, Chevy is no longer the chairperson of CCS-CSC. Orlando Taneda, the vice chairperson, has not officially assumed the chairmanship due to the temporary injuction imposed by the Student Ombudsman, so he's unable to represent their college in the LEXECOM."

"That has been noted," Valeria replied before turning to Avrille and Eleanor. "How about Antoinette? Do we know why she's not present?"

"Madam Chair?"

"The chairperson from CAMP is recognized."

"Antoinette told me an hour ago that the CAS council has called for an emergency meeting," Avrille explained as she repeatedly glanced with concern at Eleanor. "I tried to reach out to her, but she hasn't responded to my messages. We don't know why she's not yet here."

Two chairpersons from opposing parties not being present during a very important session? Coincidence? I wouldn't think so. Something must be at play here. Agad na bumaling ang tingin ko kay Castiel. He also seemed a teensy bit confused.

"Aha!" Ambrielle clapped her hands once, startling me a bit. Napahawak tuloy ako sa aking dibdib. Did she want me to suffer a heart attack?! "Everything's starting to make sense now!"

"Make sense how?" I asked, my curious gaze landing on her.

"Last week, kumalat ang rumor na magpa-file ng impeachment complaint ang majority bloc laban kina USC president at VP," paliwanag niya. Hininaan niya ang kaniyang boses para hindi kami marinig ni Valeria. Mahirap na, baka palayasin kami o baka batuhin kami ng gavel. "Two days ago, naglabas ng report ang USC na nag-e-expose kay Chevy bilang fake news purveyor."

"I appreciate the recap, but I'm well aware of what happened. I also work for our campus publication—"

"That forced him to resign, right? Dahil posibleng dawit ang council niya sa paninira kay Fabienne, may malakas na opposition sa pag-assume ni Orlando bilang chairperson at pag-represent sa kanilang college dito. 'Tapos sinabayan pa 'yon ng injunction ng Student Ombudsman."

My eyes narrowed at her slowly. Medyo gets ko ang point niya. "So you're insinuating that the USC released that report to remove Chevy and block anyone from the CCS-CSC from participating in today's vote?"

She gave me two confident nods. "Dahil introduction pa lang ng impeachment complaint ang session today, five votes lang ang kailangan para umusad 'yon sa actual impeachment trial. Let's assume na hahabol si Antoinette. Bale magiging walo na ang present chairpersons—apat sa majority bloc na susuporta sa impeachment at apat na susuporta sa USC kung hindi babaligtad si Felicity. Dahil magkakaroon ng tie, kailangan 'yong i-break ni Valeria. Ang ending, matatalo na agad ang impeachment motion!"

I smirked as I tossed a glance at Castiel who was probably trying to suppress his triumphant grin. That's a maneuver only someone like him could pull off. Michelangelo said that Alaric was dangerous. I could say the same for Castiel. Now the question was: who would be much more dangerous between the two?

"Kahit absent si Antoinette sa session, matatalo pa rin ang motion dahil hanggang four votes lang ang pro-impeachment... unless may bumaligtad sa tatlo na nasa kabilang panig." Sandaling napapikit ang mga mata ko kasabay ng malalim na buntong-hininga. "Ano ba 'yan! Hindi pa nga nagsisimula ang exciting part, matatapos na agad?"

"Puwede namang hindi ituloy ni Alaric ang pag-file ng motion sa session na 'to," saad ni Ambrielle habang makamasid sa lalaking kalmado pa rin ang itsura. "Kaso magmumukha siyang katawa-tawa kasi hindi niya mapaninindigan ang sinabi niya sa article mo na magpa-file siya today."

"He can either move forward with it and lose, or withdraw it and lose face." I clicked my tongue thrice. "It's a lose-lose situation for him. Kapag umurong siya, mabibigyan ng time ang USC na mag-prepare ng counterattack."

"Maybe he shouldn't have spoken too soon."

Castiel really thought this through, huh? But today's match wasn't over. Hangga't hindi officially natatapos ang session, puwede pang bumaligtad ang laro. I knew the feeling very well because I was put in that exact situation a few weeks ago. Castiel was able to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Ang akala ko'y mae-expose ko na ang USC sa livestream, pero biglang bumaligtad si Fabienne.

Valeria held her gavel, which froze mid-air. "With seven chairpersons present in today's session, I declare that a quorum—"

Her words were cut short when the door swung open. Pumasok ang isang lalaki na nakasuot ng uniform na pam-Biology student. Halatang nagmadali siyang pumunta rito kasi kinailangan pa niyang habulin ang kaniyang hininga. He approached the LEXECOM chairwoman's seat and handed a folded piece of paper. What's going on?

"The Chair hereby acknowledges the receipt of a letter from the CAS-CSC designating Baron Tuviera as acting chairperson and representative of their college to the LEXECOM," Valeria announced with a slightly confused face and voice. "You may take the seat for the CAS representative."

The room buzzed with murmurs. Nagpalitan ng tingin at nagbulungan ang mga katabi namin. If that Baron was appointed as acting chairperson, then something must have happened to Antoinette. Even Castiel looked so confused with the recent development. But he had nothing to worry about, right? The vote would be four-four and Valeria would cast the tie-breaking vote. Victory was still his. Unless...

"With eight chairpersons in attendance, I declare that a quorum is present." Valeria firmly struck the gavel once. "What shall be our agenda for today?"

"Madam Chair?"

"The majority leader and chairperson from CBA is recognized."

"I would like to formally file an impeachment complaint against USC President Priam Torres and USC Vice President Valeria Encarnacion," Alaric declared, making the people around us gasp. Come on, you all have already known this is happening. "They have committed an act that undermines the integrity of the council and is therefore impeachable. Given the seriousness of this complaint, I certify it as urgent."

He handed out a two-page document to every chairperson at that table. Someone from the gallery also gave us our own copies so we could follow the discussion. Mukhang hindi uurong si Alaric, ah? He must have a trick up his sleeves. Michelangelo was right to say that his friend would put on a great show.

"Madam Chair?"

"The chairperson from CCJE is recognized."

"Since the chairwoman of LEXECOM is also the USC vice president involved in the impeachment complaint, I move that she inhibits from this proceeding and let the chair pro tempore preside over this committee."

The tense atmosphere in the room grew even more intense. The opposition was going all in.

"I may consider inhibiting from this matter, but I would defer the decision to the majority consensus of the committee." Valeria's gaze moved around the chairpersons. "A motion for the presiding officer to inhibit is proposed. Those in favor, raise your hands."

Alaric's hand was the first to shoot up in the air. Jaegar, Eamon, and Owen followed. Only four voted in the affirmative. That meant there would be a tie and the motion would not be granted.

Oh, wait.

There was another round of gasps when Baron Tuviera of CAS raised his hand. Ambrielle beside me almost uttered a curse word. That would be five votes in favor of Valeria's inhibition!

I quickly turned to Castiel whose mouth was hanging loosely open. For the first time, CAS freaking flipped! He probably didn't see this coming. Poor him. All the cards were playing in his favor when his foe surprised him with a royal flush.

"Those against, raise your hands."

Only Avrille, Eleanor, and Felicity voted no.

"The ayes have it." Valeria banged the gavel once. "I shall relinquish my chairpersonship temporarily until the matter is resolved. Chair Pro Tempore Alaric Esteban may now preside. Thank you."

She sprang from her seat, left the gavel—the symbol of her authority—and brushed past Alaric who took her chair. She joined us in the gallery, sitting next to an obviously stunned Castiel. Mabilis na natutok sa kaniya ang phones at cameras para kuhanan siya ng photos at videos. If the committee wasn't in session, the reporters would have already swarmed her.

"The discussion of the impeachment complaint shall now commence," the chair pro tempore said before striking the gavel.

Looks like this round goes to Alaric.

30

Thus we've officially entered the Impeachment Arc! This will run until Chapter 23/24/25. Fasten your seatbelts because this is gonna be a wild ride!