Perigo's Aftermath

Chapter One

That year when we lost both Louie and Asher, I promised to myself that I will fight no matter what, so I won't lose someone dear to me anymore. I pushed myself to improve.

But two years later, despite all our hardwork to protect each other, to fight... I lost another one. Another person dear to me has been killed again... right in front of me. I feel so dumb... so useless... but most especially... so angry.

That triggered something in me. And that was when I realized that no matter how we exhaust ourselves to fight in this battle, we will never win unless we learn how to attack the way they do. To speak their own language.

I regret that I realized this late. Na saka ko lang tinanggap ang katotohanang ito noong nawala na sa akin halos lahat ng importanteng tao sa buhay ko.

So I urged myself to change in line with this kind of environment. Dahil noong mas pinili kong panindigan ang lahat ng prinisipyong pinaniniwalaan at sinusunod ko, natalo kami sa laban. Nawalan kami ng kakampi. Nalagasan.

Kaya kinailangan kong mag-iba. Kinailangan kong mas tumigas... mas tumapang... at mas lumakas.

Dahil iyon ang kailangan ng mundong ito. Hindi ang mahina at malambot na Athena noon.

Hiro and Sapphire thought that my anger for what happened to us changed me.

They were wrong.

My eagerness to change this kind of society pushed me to change myself. Kahit pa ang magiging kapalit niyon ay ang pagbali ko sa mga pangakong binitawan ko sa sarili ko noong tinanggap ko ang ganitong buhay sa mundong ito.

Kahit pa ang magiging kapalit niyon... ay maging halos katulad din ako ng mga taong kinasusuklaman ko.

Gagawin ko ang lahat. Makamit ko lang ang pangarap ko.

Ang pabagsakin si Augustus. At pababain ang mga namumuno sa lugar na ito.

Dahil tangina, kahit ano namang gawin namin, kung hindi namin sila kalalabanin sa paraang kapareho ng ginagawa nila, wala namang mangyayari.

Pauli ulit lang kaming matatalo. Paulit ulit mawawalan.

I wasn't this determined before. Noong pinili kong pakawalan si Asher at magpasailalim sa council, I wasn't this thirsty. Ayaw ko sa kanila noon, oo. Pero deep inside me, alam ko, na umasa rin akong magiging okay ang desisyon kong ito. Na habang nasa team ako, baka at some point, maintindihan ko kung bakit ganito ang pamamaraan nila.

Dahil kung iisipin, parehas lang naman naming gustong mapatalsik si Augustus, e. I tried to understand them... Maybe, at some point, I will agree...

Umasa pa ako noon.

But I was wrong. Because little by little, I noticed everything... from the start...

"This school was in chaos when all of you chose to leave. Zian and Ethan, the leader of Contain and Create, started a revolutionary group the moment they found out what happened. The parents of the students questioned our authority to lead this institution. All of them... They wanted us to step down from our position."

At my peripheral vision, I saw how Sapphire worriedly glanced at Hiro. The latter looked at me for a while, hoping to see a glimpse of reaction from me but I didn't give what he expects to receive. I know what they are thinking. Hindi pupwedeng magkagulo pang muli sa university. Masyado pang sariwa ang nangyaring digmaan sa palasyo.

It was a Saturday afternoon, tatlong buwan matapos naming tanggalin ang alaala ni Asher... matapos naming muling bumalik sa unibersidad na ito. At matapos naming isagawa ang unang misyon. My first mission as an official part of the Alpha Team.