(Flowstate vs. Imperium Reborn — "The Pinoy D-Rose")
8:42 PM — Concrete Beats, Quarterfinals Night 3
The bridge was alive again.
Bass thumped through the pillars like heartbeat thunder.
Floodlights flickered off the rain-soaked concrete, and every shout felt amplified, bouncing off steel and water.
Thea Cruz's voice rang out through the static mic:
"Next match — Flowstate versus Imperium Reborn!"
Phones lifted, streams went live.
The crowd was ready for chaos.
Riki Dela Peña stood midcourt, one shoe already half untied.
Bong Velasco cracked his knuckles beside him, grinning.
Teo Alvarado stretched quietly under the rim, calm as always.
The Arrival
Black and gold stepped from the tunnel like royalty.
Imperium Reborn.
Raf Alcantara. Nico "Prime" De Vera.
And the new face: Diether Alcaraz.
He looked too calm to be real — chin slightly down, eyes cold, every motion efficient.
The crowd whispered as he dribbled once, low, steady, sharp.
Someone yelled, "AYAN NA SI PINOY D-ROSE!"
The nickname spread instantly like gasoline on a flame.
"D-ROSE! D-ROSE! D-ROSE!"
Bong blinked. "Pinoy D-Rose? What's he rose-ing from?"
Thea smirked. "Watch. You'll see."
Riki grinned, half a toothpick in his mouth. "Rose or weed — both die under pressure."
Up above, a silent figure stood among the crowd shadows — Koji Tanaka, the 7'3" import rumored to be Imperium's "next stage."
He didn't move. He just watched.
Starting Lineups
Flowstate
PG — Riki Dela Peña
SG — Bong Velasco
C — Mateo "Teo" Alvarado
Imperium Reborn
PG — Raf Alcantara
SG — Nico "Prime" De Vera
PG/SG — Diether "Pinoy D-Rose" Alcaraz
Tip-Off
Teo taps it forward — Flowstate ball.
Riki takes it slow, smirking.
"Let's see what silence sounds like."
Cross. Step-back.
Floater. Swish. 1–0.
Prime answers — fadeaway midrange, splash. 1–2.
Diether touches the ball once, drives on the next.
Speed like static. Jump-stop, hang, switch-hand layup. 1–3.
The crowd roared.
"PINOOOY D-ROOOOSE!"
Bong: "Man moves like Wi-Fi on 5G!"
Riki: "And I'm about to unplug him."
He kicks his shoes off.
The court hits back — every vibration, every tremor under his soles.
That barefoot hum returns.
The Flow Returns
Riki starts moving lighter.
He dribbles low, left-right-left, almost invisible motion.
Diether keeps up — perfect mirrors.
Then Riki fakes a spin, goes opposite, scoops it in reverse.
2–3.
Crowd cheers.
Thea smiles. "The barefoot captain's awake."
But Imperium adjusts instantly.
Raf slows the pace to a crawl.
Every pass surgical.
Every motion clean.
It's like watching chess in fast-forward.
Diether glides baseline, spins midair, finishes with a backhand scoop.
2–5.
Bridgefire
Teo blocks Prime's next drive, kicks it out.
Bong hustles the rebound, quick pass to Riki.
Riki no-look dish back to Teo — slam. 3–5.
Crowd energy spikes.
Koji's silhouette leans slightly forward, silent, studying.
Raf answers — pull-up jumper, perfect arc. 3–6.
Bong fires a corner floater off one foot. 4–6.
Then Diether takes over.
Fake left.
Crossover right.
Step back.
Fadeaway jumper.
Bang. 4–8.
The chant returns.
"D-ROSE! D-ROSE! D-ROSE!"
Riki grins, barefoot, drenched.
"Okay, Pinoy D-Rose. Let's make it street."
Final Minute
Flowstate rallies.
Riki finds Bong cutting baseline — easy layup. 5–8.
Teo stuffs Prime at the rim.
Crowd explodes.
Riki coast-to-coast, eurostep, drops it in. 6–8.
Raf calls one last set — slow tempo.
Diether circles behind.
Pass fake, quick release.
Midrange dagger. 6–10.
Thirty seconds.
Riki drives through contact, hits the floater. 7–10.
Final possession.
Raf holds, clock dying.
Behind-the-back to Diether.
Pull-up jumper from the elbow.
Net. 7–11.
Buzzer.
Silence.
Then the storm of applause.
Aftermath
Flowstate breathing hard.
Imperium walking off like machines that don't need oxygen.
Riki crouched, hands on knees, sweat dripping onto the floor.
Thea approached, clipboard under her arm.
"You good?"
He nodded, smiling small. "Yeah. Just found out what real rhythm costs."
Bong tossed him a towel. "You still the barefoot king."
Riki chuckled, half-shrugged. "King doesn't mean much if you're still losing kingdoms."
He looked up at the rim — same one he missed earlier.
"D-Rose was reading me like subtitles."
He straightened, tied his shoes back up.
"Next time, he'll need a dictionary."
Thea blinked. "You mean—?"
Riki: "No more gimmicks. Barefoot, shoes — doesn't matter.
If I'm Flowstate, I adapt."
She smiled faintly. "That's the Riki I met under the floodlights."
He looked toward the ramp, where Imperium disappeared.
"You'll see, Thea. Next time... we don't play their rhythm.
We make our own."
Bong yelled from the side:
"Bro! Ate Bebang's got extra rice if we hurry!"
Riki smirked. "Perfect. Nothing like fried sisig to study defeat."
He walked off barefoot anyway — shoes in hand and a tiny grin.
Final Score:
Imperium Reborn 11 – Flowstate 7
Post-Credit Scene
Later that night, the stream replays the highlights on loop.
The chat floods with comments:
"D-ROSE MVP!"
"Flowstate still fire tho"
"WHO'S THAT FISHERMAN TEAM IN BRACKET D???"
Camera pans to the scoreboard.
At the very bottom — scrawled in smudged chalk —
DOCKYARD DRIFTERS vs EASTDRIVE ELIMINATORS
Next Game: 10:00 PM
Underneath, a fishball stick left stabbed into the table like a flag.
End of Chapter 7 — "Bridgefire."
(Next: Chapter 8 — "Dockyard Rising: The Beat Meets the System.")