["PLAY THE KING" IS ACT TWO OF THE "PLAY" SERIES. PLEASE READ "PLAY THE QUEEN" FIRST.]
It's been four months since Priam Torres, the once unpopular president of the Elysian University Student Council, assumed office. Thanks to his chief-of-staff Cas...
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CASTIEL
"FIRST OF all, I would like to thank you for meeting me. You possibly have a lot on your plate right now, so I appreciate you making the time."
"You may be the USC's chief-of-staff, but you're still one of my constituents. Lagi akong nagme-make time para makinig sa inyo," sabi ni Antoinette Santibanez. Her layered haircut bounced as she took the seat across mine. "Hey, I've been hearing whispers that you were suspended. Totoo ba 'yon?"
I chuckled nervously. "The circumstances of my leave have been greatly exaggerated."
"So you were not suspended? Kung talagang naka-on leave ka, bakit ka nag-request ng meeting today? Dapat nagre-relax ka ngayon. Dapat hindi mo muna inaasikaso ang council duties mo."
"We're student officers. No one's truly on leave. Besides, what I'm about to discuss is very important and urgent. Before we begin, may gusto ka bang order-in?"
As I promised to Priam, I would find a way to ensure that Alaric the Prick's plot to impeach him would not prosper. Nuh-uh. Not on my watch. Unfortunately, time was not on my side—I was only given a few days—so I had to act fast. Real fast. I figured that the best solution to our problem was to have a sit-down with the people who wielded the power to dethrone Priam and Valeria: the four college chairpersons who were not part of the majority bloc.
For this purpose, I chose one of the least popular cafés in the food hub. Don't worry. Hindi gaya ng negotiation ko kay Chevy, walang involved na pamba-blackmail dito. I could not risk giving another ammunition to Alaric the Prick, just in case he had already gotten first to one of the four chairpersons.
"I hope we can make this quick. I'm dealing with some pressing issues in my own council," Antoinette said. The male barista delivered one cup of cafe latte and one cup of matcha latte to our table. "We're both from CAS. You can get directly to the point."
"I've heard rumors that the majority bloc intends to file an impeachment complaint against Priam and Valeria." Request granted. I did not beat around the bush. "For that complaint to prosper, the majority bloc needs six votes. They already have five. If at least one of you from SALVo or that lone independent flips, then it might be over for us."
"Wait! Are you worried na baka baligtarin ko kayo?" Sandaling nabaling sa ibang direksiyon si Antoinette. "Cas, we may not belong to the same party as you and Priam are independent, but I will never abandon my fellow CAS students. The only time I didn't support you was when Priam ran for the USC presidency. Alam mo na, may sarili kaming candidate noon."
There were two major student political parties in Elysian University. For years, AEGIS or the Alliance for the Empowerment of Genuine and Inclusive Student-Leadership had dominated the student council general elections and taken hold of the USC and majority of the CSC chairmanships. Their streak was only broken last election, thanks to my clever maneuvering and knowledge of the technicalities. AEGIS was also Alaric the Prick's party.
