April 15, 2016

B.R.I.G.H.T. Academy

Cebu City, Republic of the Philippines

Summer time. The time we all waited and finally achieved. Not for me, I am turning 4th year college by this June 13th and will start internship this April 20th. Basically, I'm just coming back to visit my old high school because I still have friends there, and to make up for the loss of prom. Arriving at the waiting area, I notice the students, bringing in with them food-to-share for their upcoming parties and some futuristic gadgets like holographic glassphones, hoverboards (yes, I'm talking about like the one from Back to the Future), remote-control rotorless drones and much, much more. Across me, a kid shows off his trick with the hoverboard before his guardian warns him not to ride in public areas as the danger of hitting a person is present.

"Well, it's 8:15 am. And my contacts are not here yet" I said to myself as I observed my advanced wristwatch I received during my eighteenth birthday. This wristwatch I got has a built-in GPS and 3D mapping system - one of the great features that we humans cannibalized after the War of 1996. In addition to that, it acts like a phone itself where you can call people, but I'll stick to my iPhone glassphone for now, which is more of like a holographic phone.

Of course, I had to wait for my student contact. Noticing the cars that arrive, one of my promised contacts arrived. His name is Christopher Drape, he is from Tennessee but here in the Philippines, both of us are neighbors.

"Hey Chris." I called him. "Can you kindly request the school admin that I can go in? I'm only here for a quick errand." The "errand" here in question is to recreate this picture I consider "iconic" with a

"Sure thing Gill." Christopher said.

"I hope this thing goes according to plan." I said to myself. On top across me is a Widescreen LED TV, the channel was on ANC 24/7 - the Philippines' 24 hour news channel. Aside from the 2016 Presidential Elections and the K-12 education program, which are the main headlines in everyone's mind, it also reported some headlines about the 20th anniversary of the War of 1996. A few minutes later, Chris comes back, with disappointment in his face.

"Lemme guess, it's the bad news?" I asked even I already know what happened next.

"Yes, apparently, the school will not allow visitors for now because it's a 'student's party.'"

"Wow, that's amazing!" I said sarcastically, "It's just the first step to the plan and now we've hit a coral on the way to the beachhead!"

Chris was not alone when he came back to me. Accompanying him was my computer class teacher in my high school days, Sir Ervin. He placed him hand on my shoulder and said to me: "I'll try my best to convince the admin for you to visit."

"Thank you sir." I said as they both left. I then whispered to myself: "Man, this school is paranoid, even to an alumni who stayed loyal for more than 13 years." Looking at the situation, I think it's complete rubbish how they won't allow an alumni to visit on the last day of school where technically nothing but a goodbye party for each of the year levels and that's it! If it's visitors coming from other schools who had no past connections to B.R.I.G.H.T. Academy, then I understand if they don't allow them to enter. And for God's sake, I am an alumni. The only disadvantage I face is that I do not have a younger sibling who schools here - unlike my other fellow alumni who use that advantage for them visit this place. The War of 1996 happened, the world is more advanced for the past twenty years, we have facial recognitions and advanced biometrics but even if this school recognizes me, I'm stuck here in the waiting area. If it's one thing this school should have done while the world advances, it should have been automated alumni ID cards that would allow us to enter the school during after-class hours.

Seeing that I have no choice but to wait for lunch time when they are finally dismissed and free to enjoy summer, I then decided to watch the news on TV across me. A countdown screen was placed at the bottom of the news ticker: "Countdown to the War of 1996 20th Anniversary: 78 days left." The segment was an interview with the current U.S. President, Elizabeth Landford regarding on the state of the world 20 years late. Paying attention to the interview, Madame President stated that unity is what caused the human race to triumph over the alien invaders. Additional remarks include how technological advanced the human race is right now. I do remember last February 15, just a few days after B.R.I.G.H.T. Academy's Sportsfest in which Green Hawks won overall championships for the third time, that the official portrait of former President Thomas J. Whitmore was unveiled in Washington DC. Everyone knows that guy also known as "The President that united the world." I have also read his famous speech made on the morning of July 4, 1996. "Today, we celebrate our independence day!" That quote repeated in my head. I'm guessing the students of B.R.I.G.H.T. right now are saying this in their last-day-of-school goodbye party, "celebrating" their "independence" from school. The news reports on President Landford's remarks reminded me that I was born exactly two months after the War of 1996 and grew up on technologically advanced and united world. Must have been lucky indeed. I remember that my parents told me about the destruction of Manila during the war. And now 20 years after the war, the new generation of children as well as the veterans of '96 will be able to see and celebrate the 20th anniversary.

As the report ended and commercial breaks came through, I contacted one of my trusted friends in B.R.I.G.H.T., Joshvic Warque. I texted him: "Hey Josh, we are facing problems right now. I can't go in right now because of "school policies." Jesus man, it wasn't like this two years ago..."

A reply came almost instantly: "Dang man, I'll tell Rico and Kassandra to come here to the waiting area after we are done."

I then replied: "Thanks man, I gotta inform Kyle Lao about this."

Stressfully, I placed this ominous reply for Joshvic: "May I remind you of the consequence of failing to recreate this picture. It's all what I have left after prom's devastating loss. We loose this moment, then we loose everything."

"Hayyyyyy, I know. I'm sorry this happened Gill."

Speaking of Kyle, he is a friend of ours who transferred to Thailand in 2014. He visited Cebu last July 2015 and right now he is in Cebu and he will visit B.R.I.G.H.T. to play basketball with his old friends. I decided to inform of this "problem" regarding visitors.

"Hey Kyle, I got some bad news for you. You see, the school for now does not allow visitors, alumni and old students alike. I'm waiting here until lunch time when it will end." I typed on Facebook messenger. Instantly, Kyle told me this: "Well that's sucks, I'll meet you at the lobby. I'm still changing."

I looked up my holographic wristwatch. It was already 9:05 am. I am faced with the harsh reality of the school not letting me in and am left with no choice but to wait until lunch when they are dismissed. I then took out my glassphone and decided to read about the War of 1996 World Factbook to kill time. The app first opens with an introductory message stating the reason for the development of this application is for us all to reflect and commemorate what was lost and our progress in 20 years. It then shows an interactive timeline from 1996-2016, noting that the unity of the human race has prevented genocide and conflicts for the past 20 years. The human race right now has enjoyed an era of global peace. Then it opens to the main part of the app which is basically an electronic almanac. Also present in it shows each country of the world and what happened to these nations during the war. I scrolled down the long list of countries until I reached the entry for the Philippines.

It first starts with an Introduction, the Flag and the Coat of Arms at that time, map with a dot representing a targeted location and the President at that time: Fidel V. Ramos (1992-2001).

The article states that country lost its capital, Manila, during the 1st phase of the War of 1996. Not only was old Manila affected, but the entirety of Metro Manila, as well as surrounding towns and cities to close to the National Capital Region. Because Manila was one of the densest cities of the world, it was accepted that this was the reason the capital was targeted. An estimated 10 million people were killed; the deaths were mostly blamed on the slow evacuation efforts as well as the stubbornness of people who refused to leave their homes for the provinces.

President Ramos was evacuated to Baguio City, which is surrounded by mountains. Baguio City became the de facto capital of the Philippines. With most military assets gone, mostly with the destruction of Villamor Air Base in Metro Manila, the Philippines could not afford to counterattack against the aliens. But what good would that have been even if the Air Force was not destroyed or even if the U.S. military remained in the country, as on the night of July 3rd, the Philippines received what little communications from either Taiwan, China, or Japan that the alien crafts had energy deflectors. The remaining military units, namely ships, some fighter jets, and ground units, were dispersed throughout the islands prior to the alien attack to engage rouge communist and Islamist rebels. Hope seems lost at this point, with many citizens in Visayas and Mindanao having lost contact with the capital. Majority of the Filipinos flocked to churches and places of worship, while a good portion evacuated with whatever boats they can to far flung islands, others eventually reaching Sabah and as far as recently-independent Palau. on July 4, hope finally arrived when word reached that the U.S. has found a way to bring down the city destroyers. While the Manila destroyer already left the city, it was already positioned itself above Taipei, Taiwan. Knowing that the Taiwanese were in need of help, the remaining Philippine Air Force fighter jets, mainly government F-5s, were sent to Taipei. When the Filipinos landed in Taiwan, they found themselves working together with not only Taiwan, but with Taiwan's enemy, China, as well as other nations such as Japan, Vietnam, South Korea, and remnant United States Marine Corps F/A-18s based from Okinawa in Ryukyus. The Filipinos, Japanese, and the Vietnamese provided air cover by attacking alien attackers while the Americans, the Taiwanese, and the Chinese destroyed the city destroyer. The Filipinos scored 15 alien attacker kills, while loosing 5 of their own jets and pilots. However, the counterattack was a success. In a timely date, July 4, the Philippines was once again independent from annihilation, exactly 50 years after becoming independent from the United States of America.

After the War of 1996, the Philippines received UN aid in the form of food, medicine, and peacekeepers in the refugee centers. Because of Manila's destruction, Baguio remained the temporary capital of the country, while Cebu City become the economic capital. Because reconstruction was the top priority, the 1998 Presidential Elections were cancelled. It was estimated that it would take around 1999 or 2000 for Manila to be reconstructed at basic levels. These estimations proved true and by the turn of the millennium, basic electricity, water, and much of Metro Manila had been rebuilt to at least provide basic accommodations for citizens and government officials. Meanwhile, remnant U.S. forces in the Pacific that were scattered during the war were allowed to dock in the Philippines, as both are allies in Mutual Defense Treaty in 1951. These U.S. forces, along with the UN peacekeepers, would help in the reconstruction of the island. By the year 2000, Filipinos celebrated with the arrival of the new millennium with a hopes for a better decade. 20 Days after New Year, President Ramos would resign for the war had took a toll on his health and handed down to his Vice President Joseph Estrada. Estrada would continue to lead the country in the years the followed. In 2002, it was agreed that the South China Sea issue would be jointly administered by the claimant states of the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, Taiwan, and Malaysia. In the 2004 Presidential Elections, Panfilo Lacson was elected the President. In 2005, the Lacson administration finally reached an agreement that the NPA and the MNLF would lay down their arms for in exchange for autonomy and economic reforms. In addition to that, Lacson himself was able to convince the NPA and MNLF that "we are all Filipinos by blood and we should unite for the better future, just as the world did 9 years before." When the Earth Space Defense was established in 2009, several Filipino Air Force pilots trained in Area 51 in Nevada to be part of this global defense network. In 2010, Gilbert "Gibo" Teodoro became the President and has sought greater ties with long-time allies and former foes for the greater good of mankind. The country will have their Presidential elections in May 9, 2016, just two months before the 20th anniversary.

That's the part I stopped reading, as I did not bother to open the other sections of the electronic factbook. I do remember my parents telling me when I was younger I was lucky to be born two months after the War of 1996. They said that I did not live with the fear they felt, along with my older brother who was 3 years old at that time, as well as several of cousins and countless other individuals. Although Cebu City was not a target, my parents still fear that it would be next. Luckily it never came, and our city right now as one of the largest booming economies in the country. I was born in a reconstructing world, a unified world without hate or political distrust. I grew up with advanced technology which was only thought to be a product of science fiction back then in the retrofuturistic stories of the 1950s. I remember seeing the first iPhone in 2003 when I was Grade 1. When I was around Grade 2 or 3, I remember that owning a smartphone would make you the coolest kid in school. Additionally, handheld gaming became more advanced. The Gameboy, DS and the Sony PSP were developed earlier than expected, around the same time as the iPhone. You would have been the coolest kid in school as well. Meanwhile, I would see less propeller aircrafts over the years, as even helicopters themselves would be bladeless. Skateboards, although still common, are falling behind hoverboards, which were a hit when it first sold in 2007 and is still a hit in the markets. Looking back at this 20 years, my parent were right, I was lucky to be born in this generation after the war. In fact, most of my high school batchmates and friends still in B.R.I.G.H.T. were born after the war.

I was still deep in my thoughts when Joshvic and his friend AJ Lopez came to the waiting area to tell me of the good news: I can enter and visit the school but I will be the only outsider allowed for today. Well, that's that I thought as I proceeded to enter the school. Joshvic stayed in the gate to wait for Kyle Lao while AJ accompanied me to the ESL building where their classroom is located.

"Hey AJ, tell your batch I'm not there to steal your food, ok?" I said.

"Alright, no problem." AJ said.

Going up the stairs to their classroom, I came face-to-face with the muse of Blue Sharks, Kc Veloso. I was part of that team from Grade School to High School but after graduation, I continued to support the team in whatever I could.

"Hello Kaycee" I said.

"Oh hey Gill, what brings you here?"

"Just wanna recreate a picture and that's it. I'm not gonna steal your food supply lol" I jokingly said.

I then meet up with Kassandra and Rico, the two people needed to recreate this picture.

"Hey Gill, Joshvic told me about it so yeah I'm alright with recreating it."

"Sure, I'll be waiting, where you two off too?"

"Well, we're going to 8th Grader's room, their room is Coachella-themed."

"Alright, I hope we can recreate this picture."

The next hour I spent my time giving several apologizing to my would-have-been prom date. Her name is Rizza Lubay but I call her Riz for short. Although, she alreadyt forgave me because it was not my fault I could not attend prom with her, I still felt that I am "forever in debt" because she helped me try to get to prom this year. She then asked for a photo op with me on which I agree. I helped her walk down the stairs because she needs an assistance of cane for she slipped somewhere in mall. After she left, I would then share my Siquijor experience to the Prom King and Queen, who for me is the one of the best couples ever. And yes, the trip to Siquijor was the reason why I could not go to prom. We tried to find every way to go home early except there was no other way.

Later, the plan went to shit because Rico had to leave earlier than we thought. Oh well, there goes recreating that picture.

"I'm so sorry Gill." Rico regretfully said.

"Well, shit..." I said.

Now with him gone, I should just proceed in whatever I could. Seeing Kassandra, I told her this: "Hey Kassandra, plan's gone to shit. Rico's gone home. So yeah we cannot recreate."

"Aww, that sucks. I'm so sorry Gill." She apologized.

The two of us then walked back to the lobby. There, I saw Joshvic. I told him that the plan has gone to shit.

"Well, thank you both of you. Thank you for making my visits fun. Josh, thank you for your time. Kass, thanks for your time as well. And Kassandra, thanks for being so nice and friendly despite our differences."

"No problem Gill." Joshvic said while chuckling abit.

"Aww you're welcome." Kassandra gently says.

"I'll see you both on the 26th on your 'Moving Up' ceremony."

It was already approaching lunch time. It's 11:52am. A lot of students are already leaving onward to their newfound freedom called summer. And then all of a sudden, I realized my friend Kassandra was born on July 2nd.

"Hey Kassandra, may I tell you fact for awhile?"

"Sure thing."

"Alright, first of all, you were born on July 2, 1999, do you know what that means?" I said.

"Um, what does it mean?" She asked confusely.

"Well, it means you were born exactly three years after the War of 1996. You see, your sister and I were born during that year. Me, I was born two months after it." I pointed out.

"I do remember my mom and dad were telling about the that. My older brothers were still kids. I was child back then, didn't really about the war. Lucky I was born after it, my brothers would have been so scared." She told me.

"My brother was three at that time. He was scared, my mom told me he kept on crying along with my cousins who were still young at that time. So I have a question to ask you, since your 17th birthday lies on the 20th Anniversary of the war, how are you gonna celebrate it? Will you celebrate here in Cebu or in Dumaguete?" I asked.

"Well, I really don't know how I will. I'm not sure when I'll go back to Duma." She said.

I jokingly said: "Hey if I visit Duma this summer, may I come see you and maybe take a stroll at The Boulevard? Haha."

"Sure thing Gill." Kassandra said.

At this point, her driver arrives to pick her up.

"Hey Gill, I got to go now. My driver is here."

"Well before you go, thanks once again for everything." I silently told her.

"No problem Gill. See you soon."

We both parted our ways. Seeing that I had nothing left to do here in B.R.I.G.H.T. I went home and played GTA V in a videogame simulator where you feel like you are part of the game. It is like Virtual Reality taken to the extreme.

Well, that concludes for today. I'll write back when on the 26th. On the meantime, I'm also looking forward for the 20 anniversary celebrations. It is the biggest event for this year. I'm glad I was born on time to see this and all our technological advancements. And you know what they used to say: "Born too late to explore the world, born too early to explore the galaxy." I have to disagree on the last part: "Born just in time to explore to galaxy, born just in time to enjoy advanced technology, born just in time to experience 20 Years of Global Unity."

Update: Sadly on April 26th, we were not able to recreate the photo during the Moving Up Ceremony because one of us was not present to be complete. However, I received word that majority would stay, so I would now apply the Rule of Cautious Optimism.