A/N: THE STORY IS NOT DONE YET! Here's the MUST-READ EPILOGUE of ACT ONE!

CASTIEL

THE FALCON failed to capture its prey. Now it sat alone on top of the mountain, gawking at the plains below, wondering where he went wrong.

I pushed the door of the rooftop and found the lonely Reynard Falcon on the ledge. It had been an hour since his disastrous explosive exposé. I asked him to meet me here where no one could see us.

"You planning to jump?" I said as I limped my way toward him. "Or do you want to test if you have wings, just like what your surname suggests?"

"Go on. Gloat." He had his hoodie up, his hands in his pockets. He did not bother turning around to look at me. "You won. I lost."

"The truth is, you almost won." I stood beside him and stared down the wide campus field. I was reminded of how insignificant everyone and everything below was. "But I managed to get to Fabienne before she could go live with you. Kung hindi ko siya nakausap kaninang lunchtime, ako na siguro ang most wanted na estudyante ngayon."

"I may have lost, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna stop chasing you." He peered at me over his shoulder, his eyes filled with fiery determination. "In fact, I've never been this motivated to pursue a story. I'll expose your lies and deceit to the student body, and you'll lose everything. I promise."

I sighed. This guy would never learn. The game was already over! "Fabienne won't speak about it anymore. No one in the council will. You may have almost all of the puzzle pieces, but if none of us is willing to speak to you, then you've got nothing."

He chuckled. "Don't underestimate me, Mr. Chief-of-Staff. I can always find ways."

"Why are you so hell-bent in chasing us down?" I asked. "Wala naman kaming na-misuse na student activity fund. Wala naman kaming ninakaw na office supplies. I don't get your obsession with us."

"You're lying to the student body by putting on a romantic show. You want to hold on to power by winning a second term next student council election—"

"Hold up!" I cut him off. "Sa tingin mo ba'y ginagawa namin 'to dahil sakim kami sa kapangyarihan?" I could not help but laugh at him. "Masyado naman yatang mababa ang tingin mo sa amin."

"Then what else could it be?"

I looked on straight ahead. "Let's just say that we're trying to prevent a much worse person from taking the reins of power in this university who will also perpetuate a culture of impunity here."

He giggled. "Does that person even exist?"

"He does." I gave him a firm nod. "And that's what I want us to talk about. Ang tanong ay ready ka bang makinig?"

Bumuntonghininga siya. "May ibang choice pa ba ako?"

"Remember this person?" I showed him my phone where the photo of a varsity player was displayed. "Michelangelo Jordan, team captain of the basketball team?"

Kumunot ang noo niya, iniangat ang tingin sa akin mula sa phone. "Siya 'yong basketball player na nakuhanang nananakit kay Fab at nagtangkang umatake sa USC president, 'di ba?"

Tumango ako. "Siya rin ang nakisakay ro'n sa fake rumor na sinimulan ko tungkol kay Fabienne. Sinabi niyang totoo 'yon kahit hindi."

"He was punished for it, right?"

"The grievance committee initially agreed on expelling him, but they changed their minds after his valiant defender raised some laughable points. Sa huli, ang naging parusa sa kanya ay suspension, community service at public apology."

His mouth hung loosely. "I didn't know that he was almost expelled. But why is he relevant?"

"He did what he did because someone asked him to do it." I withdrew my phone and pocketed it. "Merong nag-back-up sa kanya na nangakong hindi siya mae-expel kahit gumawa siya ng paninira kay Fabienne. He wasn't part of my plan, by the way."

"Bakit niya gagatungan ang kasinungalingan? Para masiraan ang ex niya na ilang buwan na niyang hindi nakakasama?"

"To ruin Fabienne and, by extension, the USC. If you thought that this game is just between you and I, you're very much mistaken. There's another player out there moving his own pieces. He even tried to convert you to his side, but you reportedly refused."

"Oh!" There was a hint of recognition across his face. "May lumapit noon sa 'kin. Hindi ko kilala kung sino, basta hindi familiar ang mukha niya. Tinanong niya ako kung gusto ko raw bang makipagtulungan para i-expose ang kasinungalingan ng USC. I declined because I don't do collabs. Besides, he looked extremely shady."

So that guy used a proxy, huh? What a clever way to hide his involvement. Well, I could not fault him for being cautious.

"Kahit hindi ka sumang-ayon sa collab n'yo, nakahanap pa rin siya ng paraan para matulungan mo siya indirectly. He helped pass the Freedom of Information bill in the LEXECOM which you later on used to request the list of USC scholars. He gave you the tool that you needed to expose us, even if you two weren't officially allied."

His eyes narrowed into slits. "He used me indirectly, huh? How dare he."

"You're so obsessed with a big fish that you failed to notice that there's a freaking whale out there." I turned to face him. "And that's why I'm here to make a proposal, Reynard. A truce between you and I. Let's go hunt the whale together."

Reynard glanced sideways at me. "Does this whale have a name?"

"Alaric Esteban, chairman of CBA's student council and grandson of Dr. Aldous Eliseo, Elysian University's chancellor."

CASTIEL

AFTER MY meeting with Reynard Falcon, I carefully walked down the stairs and landed on the ground floor. I was about to turn in the hallway when a stabbing pain jolted in my left leg. Napahinto ako sa paglalakad at muntik nang mapasandal sa pader. Sobrang napagod yata ang binti ko ngayong araw—lalo na noong lumuhod ako sa harap ni Fabienne. O baka may iba pag dahilan?

Ah, I knew what caused the pain. Well, it was not a what, but a who.

"Are you okay, Cas?" Alaric the Prick appeared before me. He was clutching a leather folder with the Legislative-Executive Committee's logo on the cover close to his chest. "Do you need some help?"

"If it's from you, never mind." My hand tightened my grip on my cane as I regained my balance. He watched me until I was able to stand upright.

"I heard that you've been suspended—" He held up a hand. "Oh, sorry. I mean, you've asked for a temporary leave."

"You've got a problem with that?" I gritted my teeth. "Pwede ka ring mag-file ng leave kung gusto mo. Baka kailangan mong mag-reflect muna nang makita mo kung may dapat baguhin sa 'yo."

"Oh, I don't want to file a leave yet." He shook his head, beaming at me. "Not now that things are starting to get interesting."

"Interesting indeed." My hand massaged my left thigh. "By the way, I'm sorry for your loss. You've lost that potential ally who turned you down."

"Ah, that journalist?" He clicked his tongue repeatedly. "If he had only accepted my offer of cooperation, he wouldn't have been so embarrassed earlier. In retrospect, it's a wise decision to not invest so much in him. I hate bad investments. I would have lost too, but not totally."

A Reynard-Alaric the Prick alliance would have been difficult to beat, so I was fortunate that journalist did not take him up on his offer.

"It seems that you've managed to turn the tables against him," he added. "You used that live broadcast to shove your story down the audience's throat. Not gonna lie. That onscreen kiss was a good stunt."

"It's not a stunt," I corrected him. "It's not even in the script."

"Whatever it is, I've got a much better one." Alaric the Prick handed me the leather folder. "You're currently on leave, but I thought you may want to have a first look at my motion for today's LEXECOM meeting."

My eyes looked down on it, then up at him. "What is this?"

"Take a look."

My hand grabbed the folder and opened it, revealing a piece of paper inside. The letter was addressed to Valeria Encarnacion, vice president of the USC and chairperson of the LEXECOM. Naningkit ang mga mata ko habang binabasa ang nilalaman nito.

When I got to the second paragraph, my eyes went wide.

"I'm invoking Article XIV, Section 2, Subsection 5 of the Elysian University Student Government's Constitution and Bylaws," Alaric the Prick recited. "I'm formally filing an impeachment complaint against USC President Priam Torres and USC Vice President Valeria Encarnacion for committing a form of misconduct that undermines the integrity of the council."

My right hand trembled uncontrollably, my eyes protruding at the document. "W-What kind of misconduct are you talking about?!"

The smirk on Alaric the Prick's face was unwavering. "The USC tried to blackmail one of the CSC chairpersons to vote in favor of the Freedom of Information bill. Remember your meeting with Chevy in that forsaken restaurant? Priam may not have been there in person, but it's not too far-fetched to assume that he gave you his blessing to proceed with that unscrupulous act. If that's not impeachable, I don't know what is."

"You . . . !" I bared my teeth at him. This bastard . . . How dare he . . .

"I told you, didn't I?" he said, grabbing back the folder from me. "You will be the cause of the USC's downfall."

I squeezed my eyes shut. Darn it! I should have been more careful with my actions! Because I was reckless, he found an opening. He used my meeting with Chevy Serrano—which was my own idea—as a trap to gain something that he could use against me, against us.

He hijacked my own plan!

But no, I could not give him the satisfaction. Hindi niya dapat mahalata na sobra ang kaba ko sa pinaplano niya.

"You need six votes to impeach the USC president and VP," I told him. He already knew that. "You only have five votes with you. Your motion will fail."

"Then I need to convert one of the three ex-oppositionists or that lone independent in the committee. You know how persuasive I can be."

If any of our allies in the LEXECOM turned against us, then it would be a game over. The Oplan First Lady would be useless. All my months of planning would be for naught!

"It's my turn now, Cas," Alaric the Prick said. "This is me officially declaring war against you and the USC."

★ ★ ★ END OF ACT ONE ★ ★ ★

And there you have it for ACT ONE! Stay tuned for the teaser of ACT TWO!

I will be posting a Q & A segment soon, so comment your questions about PTQ here and I will try to answer them!

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Special thanks to raze_dali and imthecentralorgan for the illustrations!