03x41: 2011 Intramurals

A Chapter by RA Fernandez

The Intramurals are finally here and the sophomores show what they've got.

2011 INTRAMURALS

February 21 �" 24, 2011

Skipping his viewings of Top Gun, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (which he lent to Autumn afterwards), Let Me In (he also lent this), and the final installment of the Saw series (which sucked), It was finally the first official Intrams day... well not exactly.

This was the first day of Intrams week but not the first Intrams Day. It was dedicated to one thing and one thing only, practices.

On the Autumn Knowers Club, John and Ymara had been sadly added.

The practices went as usual that morning. There was one incident where Maan said “Hi” to Ernst but he didn’t reply. Janella also looked for the picture of her she gave him last March, which he stashed in the dark recesses of his suite which will never be unearthed again (particularly in a can of Pokemon Cards, Arbok on the cover. He almost put it in a can with Rapidash and Flareon but he wanted a constant reminder of her toxicity.)

Sr. Geck also got really mad at the batch’s insubordination and took back what he said.

“Fine, I’m giving you back to him.”

It took a few minutes for him to cool down. He finally said, “Fine, I’m just going to finish this. Then we’re through. I want first place, 'kay?”

That day, everything was ready and the only thing left was polishing, costumes, and props. They even received their Yellow Batch T-Shirt designed by Ibarra himself in all its glory… except it became pixilated in the printing process.

In the front was an ambigram of the word “Imortal” and no, they were not affiliated with the Illuminati.

In the back was an illustration of two hands holding a light blue energy ball, Dragonball style, with a phoenix in the center. This was part of their cheering routine so it was appropriately included in the design.

After this, Austin and Mo-on went to Ms. Sharon’s office for the first of many chats after class hours. The catch? It lasted for seventy-five minutes and they went home about 7 PM. Time well spent…

Finally, the next day came and the Intrams was officially started with the opening ceremony.

They were given balloons of their batch color, in this case, yellow.

The torch was passed, the big flame was lit. Standard procedure by now. Still, it was epic.

Their base was the DOR room. The chairs were arranged in aisles at the window side. Austin placed his bag in the CV line.

His only game this year was Games of the Generals. With no need to go deeper into that, he lost. That was it.

He went back to the HQ and took out an old friend, the Risk board. He played Risk with Jianne, Ernst, and Johan. Sr. Geck passed by and was mildly (at this point) dismayed by the idle students playing their silly board game as Sr. Ben and his team of students were putting the button on the costumes.

In the end, Austin won against Jianne, conquering the world and earning the ultimate bragging rights… after three hours of gameplay.

As far as he knew, Autumn didn’t have any games. He walked idly, searching in vain.

He gave up and caught up with Ernst and Bianca. They had agreed to bring shades but the way it turned out, Bianca was the only one with shades, three pairs of them.

This was perfect as they watched the Basketball game of the boys. Austin didn’t really care. Joel and Janella were flirting with each other at the back, the teachers were watching the players rock the court, Jack was batter-ramming the other team, well, not exactly. It was a pretty dull day really.

To make things worse, he received news that the next Math Competition was on Friday, about the same time as the cheering competition. Not good.

Thursday was slightly better. He was starting with Fellowship of the Ring already.

Eventually, he got bored and began a Risk game. Sr. Geck then told them that it was “unrelated activities” and was therefore prohibited. Then they brought out the Rubik’s Cubes. These were duly confiscated. Then they brought out the Monopoly board, which was asked to be put away..

Austin had half a mind to ask Sr. Gilbert about it since last year, it was A-Ok to play Risk. Sadly, Sr. Gilbert was too intimidating and they backed off. Austin spent his free time in Middle Earth instead.

He got bored with the HQ so he went looking around, hoping to find something interesting. Then he saw some people in the swimming pool area.

He entered and found himself watching the girl’s division of Water Polo. Some members of DRIX were here, particularly Bruce, watching Clara play.

Unfortunately, Janella was here. Fortunately, Joel was not. Even more fortunately, if that made any sense at all, Bianca was also here. Unfortunately, Ernst was not.

After the game (which they lost), Austin went back towards the HQ and saw Autumn in the trellis. For some reason which should be pretty obvious if you sat through the extremely dull and cheesy first half of “The Black Band”, he didn’t approach her.

After a few more hours of boredom, he found himself in the gym, watching a basketball match. The catch? It was one of the most epic matches he had ever seen in his life, and he didn’t even like Basketball.

A lot of people were there. Sr. Geck, Sr. Edmond, Ms. Mac, Autumn and her friends, Janusan, Roey, Rod, and a whole lot more.

One thing that was pretty annoying was that the first years were cheering for the Seniors, to which the Sophomores replied with, “WEH?!?!?!”

In the end, they went overtime but the Sophies still lost the game but if it wasn’t one of the most awesome games ever played, well…

The day ended with a practice as well.

Austin played a Risk game with himself that night, using the team colors. The first to be wiped out was the green team, then the yellow team, then the red team, which left the blue team. Austin thought this was some kind of premonition.

Finally, it was the final day of the Intramurals. Austin, Lance, and Johan left early for the contest with these parting words from Sr. Geck.

“Well, in case you don’t make it in time, win it for us there and we’ll win it for you here.”

“Yes sir.”

Long tragic story short, they got fifth place and were ineligible for Regionals. Austin, being as twistedly optimistic as he was, said, “Wouldn’t it be funny if they ended up in 5^th place as well?”

On the way home, they had a heated discussion about how Indie films are better than mainstream, how Saw VII sucked (oh, I’m sorry, Saw THREE-DEE!) And how 3D was a fad.

“Seriously, what’s next? Holocaust 3000, witness the most terrifying moment of history, IN THREEEEE-DEEEEE. Or a movie about a dolphin starring Morgan Freeman, HIS AWESOME NARRATION AS WELL IN THREEE-DEEE!!! What a disgrace…” Austin said.

They went through a drive-thru McDonald’s. Austin ordered his regular. As they ate, they eventually formulated one of the “greatest” songs known to man… to the tune of Bad Romance Note: I will not translate this magnum opus for its humor will be lost in translation. If you cannot understand Filipino you may skip this part.

Lance A ba-a-ais, Lance Aba-a-ais, Lance Aba-a-ais, Kumain ng Mais

Si Lance Abais kumain ng mais

Nasarapan siya dahil ito ay matamis

Lance Abais.... kumakain ng mais

‘Tapos ng limang minuto siya'y nainis

Dahil sa mais ay may dumapong ipis

Siya'y nainis... sa ipis sa kanyang mais

CHORUS:

SI LANCE ABAIS AY NAINIS SA IPIS SA KANYANG MAIS

O-O-O-O-O

SI LANCE ABAIS, INIS NA INIS, DAHIL SA IPIS SA KANYANG MAIS

O-O-O-O-OOOOO-OOO-O-O O-O-OOO

KUMAIN SI LANCE NG IPIS

O-O-O-O-OOOOO-OOO-O-O O-O-OOO

AKALA NIYA KASI AY MAIS

(YUN PALA SI RIEZ)

When they arrived, the cheering had not yet started. Austin arrived just in time as Ms. Mac called his name for his costume. He put it on and it looked… awesome. They had a Chinese motif going on.

Before the cheer, Cedric, Monica Mabuti, Carla Fabella, and Robert Ibay showed up.

“Hey Austin,” Cedric said. “Hey guys, this is my protégé in jerkoffology.”

“Cedric!” Austin said, appalled.

Also, for no apparent reason. They referred to Ernst as “Bianca” and Bianca as “Ernst”.

The Fourth years went first with their Seraphim cheer.

Finally, it was their turn.

They went in the three blocks formation. Austin had yet to see Autumn for the day.

He looked around and saw one of the most epic sights he had seen: Two hundred plus students clad in a yellow and black top with black pants about to kick-a*s on the Cardinal William Square.

In this look around, he finally saw Marise, as hyped up as everyone else. At this very moment, a sudden wave of optimism hit Austin. Deep inside he knew that they were going to win this.

The microphone kind of screwed up for Jack Bungag, who was to read to spiel, but that did not deter the awesomeness that was about to explode.

Finally, the bass drum hit. They did a somewhat complicated Tai Chi based routine. Everyone was silent as they did this.

Midway into the routine, they all simultaneously (miraculously) let out a loud yell which elicited applause and cheering from the audience.

Finally, the intro was over, the atmosphere was set, this was it. Two months has led to this…

I-mor-tal Imortal

I-mor-tal Imortal (Iiiiiiimortal)

(The girls were harmonizing with the boys with the ones in parenthesis)

Imortal sa amin ay turing

Taguring kikilalanin

Kapangyarihang walang humpay

Walang Maliw

Walang hangarin

Sukdulan Imor-

I-Mor-tal Imortal

I-mor-tal Imortal (Iiiiiiimortal)

As the accompanying actions ended, the drums beat as the Sophomores systematically raced to the Ankh position, no cloth required.

Ihasik ang bangis ng punla

Mula sa Bathala ng Lupa

Lakampati Lakampati Lakampati

Uusbong ang ugat

Dadaloy ang hangad

Anihin tagumpay na mithi

Kapangyarihan ng elemento

Sa gabay ng mga anito

Matitikas na sanga

Dahong panghalina

Ibubulid, Ibubuhos, Ilalatay

Iwawaksi mapanlinlang na serpyente

Sa daluyong; mabalasik na agos

Bubulusok, malupit na unos

Aanurin, mapanudyong hamon

Aangat, ang aming pangkat

Isisiwalat kapangyarihang walang panumbas

I-Mor-tal Imortal

I-mor-tal Imortal (Iiiiiiimortal)

Once again, the drums beat as they rushed to the next formation, the Yin Yang. In the middle of the transition, they took off their tops, revealing a shirt underneath. Some were black, some were white, in order to form the Yin Yang symbol. Then leaned forward and backward to accentuate this. Finally, the drums stopped.

Simoy ng amihan

Hininga niyo'y pipigilan

Sa ipo-ipo'y ilalagak

Iwawasiwas palalong pangarap

Kamtin ang lupit ng hangin

Sa aming pagaspas

Sa paglalakbay tagumpay

Ililipad pataas

I-Mor-tal Imortal

I-mor-tal Imortal (Iiiiiiimortal)

The drums beat again as they moved to the infinity symbol whilst putting their tops back on. Micherenz kinda, sorta, to a certain extent, failed to put on his top and, as a result, it was hanging from his right arm.

The infinity itself was kind of lopsided but nonetheless, still awesome.

Darang ng araw

Liwanag ng buhay

Mula sa kawalan

Bulalakaw

Iimbuyog sa karimlan

Init ng apoy

Papawi sa hangarin

Init ng apoy

Papawi sa hangarin

Kami'y kikilalanin

Uukit ng kasaysayan

Mapagwagian ningas ng kalaban

I-Mor-tal Imortal

I-mor-tal Imortal (Iiiiiiimortal)

Finally, it was time for the biggest formation they have prepared.

They made an arch around the CWS. Some students stayed in the middle and pulled out multiple pieces of cloth. Then Rocelina Belen, whose costume budget had been inflated significantly, came out in a Peacock costume.

Then the most unexpected thing happened, from the ground, in between the “feathers”, three beams of light shot out, revealing holograms of the previous three formations.

They said the final verses in this epic climactic finish.

Kalasag nami'y metal

Di lalagos, Di aalpas

Anumang sandatang itatapat

Sintibay ng aming adhikain

Matatag na simulan

Hadlang aming kababakahin

Tagumpay handa nang kamtin

Kalasag nami'y metal

Di lalagos, Di aalpas

Anumang sandatang itatapat

Sintibay ng aming adhikain

Matatag na simulan

Hadlang aming kababakahin

Tagumpay handa nang kamtin

I-mor-tal Imortal

I-Mor-tal Imortal

I-mor-tal Imortal (Iiiiiiimortal)

Imortal sa amin ay turing

Taguring kikilalanin

Kapangyarihang walang humpay

Walang Maliw

Walang hangarin

Sukdulan Imor-

I-Mor-tal Imortal

I-mor-tal Imortal (Iiiiiiimortal)

IMORTAL!!!

The feathers retreated as the arc went out from the sides. The holograms disappeared and the music stopped. Cue applause.

NOTE: You may try translating this but I strongly recommend against using Google Translate. The Metal Verse alone translates to “We are a happy metal shield” which cannot be any further from the original verse.

Austin “un-velcroed” his top and it looked like a cool jacket, more or less. He went up to change and watched the rest.

The first years’ key verse was “Di mapipigil, di mahahadlangan, kami ay mananakop.”

This was mocked by Hiro. It would only get worse from there.

As for the third years, Umalohokan completely rocked the CWS, even recycling their “victory mantra” from the Field Demo back in August.

Finally, it was time for the Awarding Ceremony.

TEAGS sat in one place, beside the Patola family.

The music that played on a never-ending loop was The Time by the Black Eyed Peas. Pretty much everyone in the building vowed never to listen to that song ever again.

Their teachers(Sr. Jojo, Ms. Mac, Sr. Edmond, Ms. Anne, and Ms. Laurice) were dancing in harmony as the students were enjoying this “unity”

Fast forwarding to the ceremony proper, the winner for the Sportsmanship award went to the Freshmen. The winner for Most Disciplined batch went to… THE SOPHOMORES.

The Sophies all jumped for joy at this news as Sr. Geck proudly, proudly, received the award. The Sophies then gained back their composure like the unparalleled awesome disciplined b******s that they were. Already, at this very moment, not even halfway through the ceremony yet, they were already part-time kings and queens of the world.

For Best Assistant Student Team Manager, the Seniors got that.

For Best Student Team Manager, to their surprise, Basti won it. Once again, the batch felt so proud for Basti. This was truly a triumphant day.

For the Assistant Team Manager, Ms June Mojica from the Freshmen won. For Team Manager Royale, the winner was…

“Mister Geraldo DG. Banaag,” Ms. Nanette spoke into the mic.

This was the third and hopefully not the last time the Sophomores jumped up in the air. Sir Geck walked up to the stage and received his well deserved award, the look on his face was undeniable happiness.

This, my friends, was the most glorious day of their lives.

This was not deterred by the results of the Cheering competition They were named third place, seniors second, juniors first. Austin feared the Gilbert Principle again but it never came.

Finally, the overall scores were to be announced.

“Third Place, with 1870 points… SOPHOMORES!”

They jumped up once more, despite a mere third. In their eyes, it wasn’t a “mere third” it was “THE THIRD”.

“Second place, with 1970 points”

“WHAT?!” the Sophies exclaimed. Every game had a pretty high scoring system so it was surprising that they were only 100 points from the second placers. It was revealed that it was “Christian Dior Sardua’s Fault” for crossing the lines in the 100-meter sprint, when they were supposed to be first.

Anyway, the juniors were second and the seniors were first with 3145 points.

They played the token “We Are the Champions” by Queen and then the Seton Hymn.

They took some batch photos and stuff like that, Austin said goodbye to everyone and headed towards the waiting area to get into the newly fixed Anonymous. Then he remembered, the simulated Risk game, those results did happen.

This put a little smile on his face as he drove back to the hotel…

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