OFFLINE:\Philippines\Pasay City\Bayanihan Clamshell Gigamall>
It is a sunny December 21st in the Philippines, throngs of people flocked in the biggest shopping center in the metropolis. Cute, disembodied Japanese and Korean voices laid over a dubstep music's were heard from the outside.
Ren Hernandez poised in front of the convention hall's entrance for a moment, then stepped inside. He grasped his gamer's badge in hand, Mom, Dad, I've gone this far, and now...I'll really put my best in this game!
He brought himself here for one reason: the annual Call of the Battlefield Online tournament. That game is an American first-person shooting online game that caught the gaming world by storm, that even players with low-spec computers can enjoy blasting their frenemies online. Think of it as Special Force or Cross Fire but not made by Koreans.
He gaped at the stage setup consisted of three glass-enclosed colored gaming booths and eight 64-inch television screens surrounded the booths. So, this is it...
He wore his badge and few young bystanders glanced at him. They called him by his in-game name: RenDerringer. Like many famous pro-gamers worldwide, he shook their hands and sought photo op with him using their camera phones. Ren smiled at his fans and signed their autographs like a local TV celebrity.
After the moments of fame, the smell of fried beef patties lured him towards Estelle's hamburger stand. He peeked at her cooking and exchanged smiles.
"Good thing, that mom and dad allowed me to work with them today"
"Why?" Ren brought out his black wallet from his cerulean fleece shorts.
Estelle flipped the burgers, "So that I can cheer on you, Ren the Ringer!"
"It's RenDerringer. Ren DER RINGER"
"Either way, it'll really sound Ren the Ringer, Ren"
Ren bought a piece of hamburger from Estelle and sat beside her food stand.
"Eh? I though you don't like us gamers" Ren spoke while he chewed a small bite of his hamburger.
Estelle replied as she fried 5 beef patties, "It's because you waste a lot of stuff in that hobby"
While having casual chatter, they watched two online roleplaying game player-versus-player tourneys for two hours
The e-sports host called the participants for the Call of the Battlefield team deathmatch. Ren bade goodbye to Estelle as his teammates found him. His team moved to the gaming booths in a composed manner, like it was another skirmish in a local internet cafe. From this hour onward, Ren donned his in-game representation of himself, an avatar to be precise by logging into the game. He's RenDerringer, a Korean Special Force assault operative for the last glorious time.
IN-GAME:\Call of the Battlefield Online\Operation Shattered Hourglass>
RenDerringer and his teammates, clad in slate-gray & sand camouflage, took cover behind the fallen temple's bullet-ridden mudbrick walls. Three adversaries, wore dark blue combat fatigues represented as the French counter-terrorism unit, GIGN, sprayed bullets on them but no one got hurt.
"Throw a grenade!" RenDerringer commanded his teammate while blindly sprayed a round of his submachine gun.
His comrade cooked the grenade and hurled onto rushing GIGN operatives. The bodies of their opponents flew away in a grenade blast. His team dashed through the smoke to reach the bombed marketplace.
They spread out and took cover behind wooden stalls & crates. Two of his teammates sniped four oncoming enemies' heads in succession.
"No camping on their spawn point, let's make this game clean!" RenDerringer ordered his operatives.
He reloaded his assault rifle until he heard footsteps approached his range. He gunned down two adversaries' necks even before they tried to backstab him. After eliminating his ambushers. he looted his opponents' remains for extra ammunition.
Ren's team made 10 kills and dominated the match. He turned back and saw an enemy GIGN operative aimed his bullpup sniper rifle on his cover.
"Don't be content on your lead, Derringer!" the enemy taunted and spread bursts of lead on his head and legs. Ren took cover and his sniper blasted its head. As it fell in a painful death, the enemy spewed a lot of Filipino curse words, and even wished for a typhoon to kill off his team.
OFFLINE:\Philippines\Pasay City\Bayanihan Clamshell Gigamall>
Due to their enemy's unsportsmanlike conduct, Ren's team won by default . From the second match onwards, the team employed the same ambush tactic, minus the profanity encountered during the first match. Ren's team, the Tinajeros Triggers, climbed to the grand finals round. However, the host called for a break...
Ren headed to Estelle's burger stand and recognized Derek, his bespectacled friend, ate with Estelle. He placed his half-eaten burger in the counter and approached Ren,
"Congrats, my friend!" he shook Ren's left hand.
"Yeah, I'm glad that we'll compete later on," Ren patted Derek's smooth shoulders.
Derek said to Ren, "If one of us win 500,000 Pesos today, where will you spend 'em?"
"I'll save it for school and for my parents of course!"
"Well, it'll be same as yours, Ren" he answered back in a softer tone.
Estelle pressed the boys' shoulders, "Why are you guys glum today?"
As much as they'd want to talk more as friends, the host called their teams back on their booths for the final battle. Estelle asked her parents to take charge as she headed towards the spectators.
IN-GAME:\Call of the Battlefield Online\Operation Shattered Hourglass>
As soon as they appeared in the village, RenDerringer's team took over the desolated marketplace. They hid behind wooden covers and gunned down 4 operatives that wore green camouflage combat outfits, represented as the Delta Force. His snipers hid behind the vegetable stands, until a leaf green-masked sniper shot their napes from behind.
"SNIPER!" RenDerringer screamed at his teammates after hearing dying cries from his snipers.
He took one of his sniper's guns and tried to shoot the masked Delta Force operative. His enemy hopped sideways and sprayed few bullets but none of them managed to dot his body. He threw two grenades behind the stalls and blasted two of his teammates.
"What the--!" one of his blasted teammates yelled after seeing their lone target.
The masked adversary showered lead on the other teammate and took its spot.
"Something's fishy with the masked guy!" one of the adult teammates screamed.
"I hope no one from our team's feeding directions on that guy!" the other player bantered.
"This time, we'll have to spread out!" RenDerringer ordered his teammates.
RenDerringer's team materialized back to the temple ruins and rushed to the nearest houses for cover. One of his snipers saw the masked operative and his team positioned on their spot.
"Ren, isn't that masked guy your buddy?"
"Yeah it's him, DerekHit" RenDerringer answered as he gunned down their enemies.
"I hope you are not leaking our location, Ren! I know he's your bestfriend but this isn't the time!" the adult teammate pitched a cooked grenade onto their targets and killed three of them in a blast.
RenDerringer blitzed outside and engaged DerekHit by himself.
OFFLINE:\Philippines\Pasay City\Bayanihan Clamshell Gigamall>
While in the middle of the crowd, Estelle glanced at a person beside her. He seemed to be giving directions to someone on phone through his bluetooth earwig while he browsed on a small device. She overheard the guy's voice,
"Derek, the Triggers are all around you!"
Did I just hear it right? Someone's been coaching him away from the booths?Estelle peeked at the suspicious guy once more.
"Burn that freakin' friendship bridge right now, it's for your mom's health!" said the guy beside Estelle.
This isn't good, Ren's being cheated all along!Estelle slapped her forehead and she took a picture of the coaching man with her smartphone, then walked away in disgust.
IN-GAME:\Call of the Battlefield Online\Operation Shattered Hourglass>
RenDerringer blasted DerekHit's head in short bursts. He ran back to his teammates and rained down bullets on his unguided adversaries.
"Let's leave, guys!" RenDerringer led his team to another hiding spot, running through scorching terrain.
"Why don't we all spread out instead?" one of his wounded teammates suggested as he checked his ammunition.
RenDerringer's team spread themselves all over the sandy village.
The match became a bloodier hide-and-seek as both teams have to go all over the place. They exchanged kills until both teams reached 96 points, and the time is running out.
RenDerringer and his team resorted back to their ambush tactic. They hid back in the marketplace stalls until they saw a barrage of grenades rained all over them.
OFFLINE:\Philippines\Pasay City\Bayanihan Clamshell Gigamall>
The crowd roared in vigor as they saw the screens filled with explosions. Estelle's eyes directed downward as she saw the screens for the last time.
That Derek is a jerk! He got away with that act! I'm sure he paid that guy in front!
She gazed at the crowd as if she wanted to set their hairs ablaze and walked away.
The host called both teams out to receive their respective cash prizes. The organizer's scantily-dressed booth girls handed a large check worth 500,000 Pesos to Derek's team, and 250,000 Pesos for Ren's team for being the 2nd placers in Call of the Battlefield Online tournament.
Ren peeped at Derek's seemingly victorious face. His coffee brown eyes shed tears and heard him mumbling, "I hope my winnings will restore your face"
Ren thought as they walked away from stage with the check, Now I know why he was glum a while ago...