Alex Reynard
The Library
Alex Reynard's Online Books
--Chapter Nine--
Outside, Cody could see orange-costumed Preykids pouring out of multiple classroom buildings. All of them heading towards the Pred side. They looked like a platoon of fire ants.
Cody started looking around for Jayden. By happy coincidence, the mouse was already walking next to Kenny. Cody called out, "Guys! Wait up, I wanted to talk with you!"
Jayden turned around. "Code Red! 'Sup, munk? You're not still buggin' cause they gave me a robobrain, are you? I saw you lookin' at me funny during lunch."
The chipmunk winced. "Sorry. But you can't blame me for being suspicious, can you?"
Kenny smiled that breezy smile of his. "Blame you for being suspicious? That'd be like blaming fish for living underwater."
"Fair enough, funnybunny. But listen, this is serious. I've been thinking about the Newbrains a lot. Kenny, do NOT get one, no matter what anyone tells you."
Jayden looked a little miffed. "Hey, mine's pretty nice actually."
Cody nodded in understanding. "It might be. This isn't about how nice it is. Jayden, I want you to really, really pay attention to your own behavior from now on."
The mouse was a little unnerved by the look in Cody's eyes. "Allright. What for?"
Kenny's whiskers stuck straight out. "You're thinking the Preds might be using the Newbrains like a remote control, right?"
Cody was amazed his friend had caught on so quickly. "Exactly!" He gave Kenny a pat on the shoulder, but then fixed his eyes on Jayden. "I think what they're gonna do is, you remember how they said at the end of the week they'd reunite us with our parents? What if they're hoping that everyone has a Newbrain by then? And at just the right time, they push a button and take you over. Next thing you know, your Dad's dead and you're the murderer."
"Holy shit!" Jayden paled. He thought about this for a moment. "But... fuck! He's just the secretary of agriculture! I mean, I love him but he ain't nobody important really."
"You've gotta think beyond that," Cody insisted. "Yolanda's got a Newbrain too, remember? And her dad's the goddam vice prez. Everyone from The Box is the son or daughter of somebody important. Government, military or big business. Hydra's dad has a lot of power in the senate. Frank's dad's an admiral. Shit, Kenny's dad is a diplomat. If they got to him, they could wait until he was with his dad in a roomful of Prey delegates from other countries and make him slaughter everyone he could get his hands on!!"
Kenny's spine turned to ice imagining that.
Cody could see Jayden was starting to feel like he'd make the worst mistake of his life letting the Preds tamper with his brain. "Look, it's not your fault," Cody said. "I'm sure Miss Vera said all the right things to you. I'm sure the Newbrain is really neat and makes that fog-stuff go away. I don't blame you for getting one. All I'm asking is that you keep watch over yourself. If you find yourself doing anything and you don't know why you're doing it, let me know. Even if it seems like nothing. If I'm right, they'll probably test the control first to make sure it works."
Jayden was shivering now, stumbling occasionally as he walked. "Oh fuck man, this is way more than I can take..."
"You have to try."
"I will but..." Jayden shook his head. "You weren't there when she talked to me, bro. I've got a good bullshit radar because I'm so full of it myself. She wasn't full of it. I can't believe she was just acting. I mean..." He suddenly sobbed. A part of him thought with awful clarity how much sense it made that someone could only act nice to a guy like him if they didn't really mean it.
Cody had a moment of regret. He hadn't meant to push the mouse this far. Jayden Winters, crying!? 'And you caused that. You're a real people person, Cody,' his internal self spat at him.
He patted the mouse's back. "Hey, hey. I might be wrong. She probably did mean everything she said. I'm starting to get the feeling these Preds really do think they're doing everything for a greater good. I'm just saying, their 'greater good' might not be so good for us. Just keep aware, that's all. If I'm wrong, you've got a shiny new thinker that works wonders and I'm just being paranoid, okay?"
Jayden blinked a bit. "Yeah. Okay. Okay." He harshly wiped his sleeve across his eyes. "You didn't fuckin' see that."
"Didn't see a thing," Kenny said.
"This place is hell. I've cried too," Cody said quietly.
Jayden nodded.
They walked without talking until they reached the athletic field; a big grassy rectangle with goals at both ends. There were bleachers set up on either side. 'At least I won't have to sit with them,' Cody thought as he saw the Preds pouring in from the opposite end. An ocean of blue. Cody thought for a moment that he liked their color better.
He noticed there was a quickly set-up snack booth equidistant from both bleachers. 'Clever,' Cody acknowledged. 'Force the rest of us who aren't playing to get near the other side if we want anything to eat. They really want us to play nice.'
Jayden was heading towards the snack booth. The mouse was silent but not crying anymore. "You okay?" Cody asked. "I didn't mean to mess with your head."
"Naw, I'm okay. And besides, they already did that, right?"
Cody felt better. If Jayden could still crack jokes, he was okay. Cody'd had the horrible mental image of Jayden getting so freaked out over his Newbrain he'd try to blast it out with a bullet. "Okay, I'm gonna go sit by Kenny."
"Allright. I'm actually thinkin' 'bout playing. I wouldn't mind running around, kickin' the ball and pretending it's a Pred's ass."
Cody laughed.
Jayden pointed at the booth. "Hey, you want me to grab you anything? Looks like they got snow fuckin' snow cones!"
A snow cone actually sounded like it'd be really good right about then.
*****
'They sure have a lot of staff on the sidelines,' Cody thought. 'They're probably worried there might be a riot.' Great Predator Army members stood at attention all along the perimeter of the field, every hundred feet or so. There were a few around the bleachers on both sides too. Tina the lioness was among them, looking again like a heavy metal pope. Though for the first time, Cody realized that most of the staff on the Prey side were Preds and vice versa. He noticed a mouse chick on the Pred side whose uniform made her look like a sexy maid. 'Why couldn't I have had her for a teacher?'
None of the Preds appeared to be armed, though Cody knew they might've had small weapons hidden on them somewhere. Their costumes were definitely extravagant enough to have hiding places.
Vera and some other Preds (fellow teachers, he assumed) were encouraging all the kids who wanted to participate to come down onto the field so they could assemble a team. To no one's surprise, Frank automatically assumed the position of team captain and started sizing other kids up. One possum boy challenged her authority. Cody didn't hear what she said back to him, but the guy slunk away like she'd snatched off his balls. Cody grinned.
Down in the grass, Frank was considering her options. There were lots of kids who had impressive size or species attributes, but she didn't know how they'd play. There were also plenty who looked a bit puny but really eager. The zebragirl started shouting out questions, asking who'd played sports before, what sport, what position, how long, etcetera. One jackrabbit boy had feet that looked like they could kick down a house. Frank definitely wanted to see what he could do to a ball. She chose Carlos as a winger, despite some other kids' protests. But she knew what she was doing with the skunk boy. Looking over at the other team, it appeared they'd chosen a big, slow bear girl for their goalie. Frank thought she'd counter with agility. A jumpy squirrel boy seemed like a good choice. She threw Jayden into the pack as well, hoping to weaponize that damn mouth of his.
After about twenty minutes, both sides had chosen their starters and benchwarmers. The crowds in the bleachers were snacked up and ready for the game to start. Finally, Guy Swansea strolled out to the center of the field in his full Broadcast Day regalia.
The white fox commenced his opening speech through a megaphone. "Welcome, Preds and Preys of Camp Carnivore! I hope you've all been having a jolly stay at our little vacation retreat!"
Cody suppressed his gag reflex.
"We've brought you all here today in the spirit of unity. Despite the Fences and our cultures, we're all pink and squishy under the skin. Someday soon we will all march forward into a new future where all species are equal and peace reigns in the hearts of everyone!"
Someone on the Pred side threw a popsicle at him.
It missed by many yards, but he still got the message. "Right. Okay then, let's get on with it. We sprung this on you young furs as a surprise because we didn't want you worrying yourself into a frenzy over what the other campers would be like. Or building a team like an army to utterly annihilate them. We just wanted to give you all a chance to meet each other and realize you're not so different. We figured a friendly competition would give you a chance to let off steam in a positive way. Plus, we all agreed that having a Pred/Prey dance would be exceedingly awkward."
This got a decently big laugh and a few shouts of agreement.
Guy pointed towards the scoreboard at the edge of the field opposite the snack booth. "Note the clock! In approximately ninety minutes it will be dinnertime, so we shall play till then and then it shall end, even if there's a tie. We'll have a big victory feast afterwards. And it will be a victory feast for all of us no matter which side comes out on top ...because I'll consider it a massive win if we get through this without anyone eating each other."
A bigger laugh this time. Guy smiled to himself, hoping that making a joke about it really would keep it from happening.
"Anyway, good luck to all! And remember, this isn't the world championships. It's just a friendly game. Fun is what it's all about. So have fun, everyone!" With that he strode off the field to moderate applause.
Both teams took their positions on the field. Cody noticed that the GPAs had smartly decided to have two referees, one of each, so there'd be no accusations that one side had an unfair advantage. He noticed Rick was one of them. The other was a poodle guy he hadn't seen before.
Frank placed her players as strategically as she could, but until she saw them in action, a lot of her choices were gut guesswork. She approached the other team captain and gawked at him. His rusty fur complimented his blue uniform, but his black-furred limbs were surreally long. "Someone grab you at both ends and stretch you, fox?"
The Pred tossed his hair and smiled at her with a dark edge to it. "I'm a maned wolf. I get that a lot. And shouldn't you really be a ref?"
The zebragirl smirked at him. Oh, this one would be a challenge. She could see it in his eyes. Good. She hated winning easily.
The poodle dude set the ball down on the field. Rick held out a coin. "Call it. Whoever wins gets first possession." He flicked the silver circle into the air.
"Tails!" Frank and the wolf shouted simultaneously. Frank noticed he'd been staring at hers as he'd said it. Though she had been doing the same.
Rick rolled his eyes. "Lets try this again. Just one of you call it this time."
"Heads!!" they both shouted as he flipped.
Rick growled. "Okay, THIRD time..."
Poodle guy was holding back guffaws.
Cody would have freely admitted to anyone who asked that he didn't know dick about soccer. But man, did everyone take off running as soon as Frank kicked that ball! Orange and blue uniforms swarmed all over the field. Everyone was after that bouncing ball.
Frank kept a steady eye on it. She hollered out commands to her players on the fly. The whole game was on the fly. They had no coach and no set rules (aside from 'no murder'), but that was okay. Frank was fine with thinking on her feet. Not having any set plays forced her to strategize on the spot. Adapt to what the other team did. She liked that.
"We're gonna chew you up and shit you out!" a cheetahboy shouted as he streaked by.
"Good luck with that!" she yelled back.
"You'll break your teeth off on my dick!" Jayden added for good measure.
Frank couldn't resist a giggle, glad the mouse was on her side.
Cody was starting to understand the appeal of this game. It hadn't taken long for him to get sucked in. That little spotted ball kept coming so close to the goals, only to be intercepted at the last second.
He realized how smart some of Frank's choices were. That bear goalie was a wall, but she couldn't move fast. The squirrel at Frank's end zipped back and forth like a bullet. And whenever Carlos had the ball, all the Pred players were wary as hell about getting anywhere near that black-and-white tail of his.
Frank watched Carlos making an unhindered run at the Preds' goal. 'Genius,' she praised herself.
When the Preys scored the first goal, Cody found himself cheering just as hard as everyone else.
Frank only allowed herself a small smile in celebration. In pro soccer, she knew that sometimes only one goal would be scored in an entire game. But this was a loose match with amateurs. She knew neither side could organize a solid defense, so they were both throwing their all into offense. This would be a messy, ugly game with goals scored all over the place. Fun, fun, fun.
In fact, the Preds soon took advantage of the Preys' stunned happiness and scored a surprise goal of their own. Frank had to give it to the fennec who'd made the kick; he'd kept his focus where it belonged.
The scoreboard changed to one and one. Cody sucked on his snow cone and tried to keep from crushing it in his hand. 'No need to worry. Frank'll pull off another goal.'
There were fouls aplenty as the game rumbled on. Though most were just accidental crashes. Frank had expected more aggression from the Preds. More kicks and shoves, and possibly biting. The Preds played hard, but not viciously. She hadn't seen cheating from anyone yet. She hoped it was because she'd encouraged her team to show no fear. Put up a wall of toughness. Let the Preds realize intimidation wasn't going to work.
Though soon enough someone did pull a dirty play. One of her players had accidentally fouled one of a pair of doberman brothers. The other brother retaliated with an elbow to the gut.
Frank noticed that even before the refs could call him out, the other team captain was charging over looking pissed as hell. He bared his fangs and ordered his player out of the game. Frank even heard him say something about, "We are not gonna be their stereotypes of us!"
'One respect point earned, maned wolf,' she thought.
The refs stopped play to confer with the team captains. By official rules, the doberman's stunt would've gotten him permanently ejected anyway, leaving the Pred team minus one player for the rest of the game. However, given the nature of this specific match, the refs weren't sure how the spectators would react to one side being given such a clear disadvantage. They asked both captains if they wanted to try a compromise. It was agreed: the Pred team would get a replacement player, but the Prey captain would get to choose them.
Grinning, Frank picked out a somewhat-overweight young persian cat. The wolf did not contest her choice, but she did see him cringe a bit.
Play resumed. Time to chase the ball again.
Frank was learning who on the other team was a threat. The remaining doberman boy was nothing without his brother beside him. And the replacement kitty was just following the others blindly. Though the maned wolf was one hell of a runner. Accurate too. Plus there was a ferret and lion duo who had fantastic chemistry. They'd scored another goal together and had tried to repeat their success multiple times since then. Each time they had the ball, Frank felt a wee bit of panic until her guys wrestled it away.
Meanwhile in the stands, Cody's enthusiasm was waning a bit. He'd been pretty excited for the first half hour. His team and the other guys had each scored two goals. But then both sides started to figure out the concept of defense and things got a little repetitive. Attack, block, attack, block.
It was nice just to see Frank run though. Her speed and power were really impressive. Equal to any Pred on the other side. Maybe after the game he could talk with her a bit.
Cody's snowcone was reduced to a sticky, dripping triangle so he tossed it aside, watching it ping off the bleacher's insides on the way down. He took his attention off the game and just watched the GPAs guarding the stands. It occurred to him that if he'd stayed behind when everyone else converged here, it would have been a fantastic opportunity for snooping. He winced. With everyone at the game, he would have had his best shot at breaking into some of the locked areas he'd encountered the night before. There just had to be some evil shit hidden in that medical building for instance. He'd blown his opportunity. If he tried to sneak away now, one of the Preds would undoubtedly spot him and drag him back.
As he watched the GPAs, he tried to pick which one had the most preposterous outfit. Guy came close with that golden junk-shield of his. Gilda the humongo-husky had an obscenely teeny skirt with a slit up the front, and Cody thought he could see little red hearts on her underwear. There was also a coyote woman with so many gold buttons down her jacket that it caused sparkly afterimages when Cody closed his eyes. The Preys on the other side looked no less crazy, but they were so far away it was hard to tell details. He did see a skunk whose hat seemed to have silver horns.
Down on the field, the jackrabbit was penalized for using his hands to deflect the ball.
"Next time use your ears!" Frank called out.
Not long after, the refs' whistles sounded and the game went into a fifteen-minute timeout. GPAs with coolers full of ice-cold water and sports drinks passed them out to grateful players. Kids in the stands made mass migrations to the snack booth or nearby porta-potties.
"Gonna take a leak. Back in a bit," Kenny said as he got up.
Cody nodded to him. They hadn't spoken much during the game. Kenny was way more involved in it anyway.
Cody did a bladder-check and all systems seemed fine. So he kept his seat, rested his head in his paws, and just looked out at the Predkids' bleachers.
He had never been so close to so many of his enemy before.
He watched them getting snacks and doing pee-dances in line at the johns. Some, just like him, were sitting and watching the Preys. One, a scowling red fox girl, was even seated in the same position. 'Are you thinking what I'm thinking?' Cody sent to her.
He supposed he could be man enough to admit that maybe not all of them were his enemy. He wasn't sure where they'd come from, but he'd heard a rumor discussed in the cafeteria that both sides had put their VIP's kids in a Box, so the GPA had swooped in and taken both targets. If that were true, Cody wondered which side had copied the other's idea. And he still wondered if he and the others had been meant as bait.
'Or,' he considered, 'the GPA obviously planned this for a long, long time. Maybe they had agents infiltrating both governments? Maybe they were the ones who'd suggested using The Box in the first place? Make their opponents do all the work for them?'
It was possible. One of the most frustrating things about this whole situation was not knowing how far the Preds' power extended and what their true motives were. Either the GPA were truly just a branch of the Pred military, and all their lovey-dovey speeches were lies, or else they really did believe their lovey-dovey speeches, weren't allied with the rest of the Preds, and wanted everyone to live in harmony. Either way, Cody knew the end result. The Fences would come down, and there would be a bloodbath.
Meanwhile, Frank was retying her sneakers and mentally reorganizing her team. Some of her players were doing just fine and could stay put. Her goalie looked a little tired, but seemed to still have plenty of energy in reserve. She'd put an armadillo and a hedgehog on either side to take some of the pressure off him. That boar kid had turned out to be a lot of grunt and no punt, so he was out. She scanned the benches, looking for the right spark; that look in someone's eyes that said they didn't just want to win, they were going to win.
Suddenly, her field of vision was full of shins.
She looked way up and saw the maned wolf boy towering over her. "Spying on me, team captain?" she asked playfully.
He brushed the hair out of his eyes. "Naw. I just wanted to tell you... you've been playing really good so far. For a girl, and a Prey."
Frank grinned and pulled her laces tight. She stood up as tall as she could, meeting his eyes. "I must really be doing well if you had to stick all that on the end of your praise."
He barked a laugh. "Fair 'nuff."
The zebragirl looked him up and down. "I liked what you said to your midfielder. The dog with the elbow."
"Oh, that," he remembered. "I knew you guys'd probably be nervous when you came out. Y'know, 'cuz we're Pred. I told my guys, 'No bully shit. You win by being jerks to them, we lose.'"
Frank nodded approvingly. "Very honorable."
"Thanks."
She made a decision about him and put her hand out. "I'm Frank Tanondo. Not Frankie; just Frank."
He nodded and shook, though she could tell he thought that was a little bit odd. "Ethan Carter. Pleased to beat you."
Her grin grew wider. "You haven't beat me yet."
He just smiled with a zen look in his eyes. "Sure I have. Not your fault, but I just know."
'Oooh...' Frank thought. She liked an opponent with this much confidence. It would be delicious to take that away from him. "Better get back to your team before they think you've switched sides," she said.
He turned a half-step, then looked back. "You kinda make me want to," he said after a moment of hesitation.
Frank blinked and felt her heart go boom. She had been undecided about the Preds up till now, and she still wasn't sure about all of them, but she damn well knew how she felt about at least one of them. As she watched Ethan walk away, admiring his tail, she hoped he'd still feel the same after she beat the pants off him.
Kenny returned to his seat beside Cody. The chipmunk noticed he was carrying a hotdog with a bite taken out of it. "Dinner's in less than an hour, man."
The bunny shrugged. "Yeah, but I'm hungry now." He took a bite, then suddenly laughed. "I ran into Walter in the snack line. For a second there, I thought one of the Preds had put on the wrong uniform!"
"They did," Cody quipped.
Kenny chuckled. "I shoulda said that to him."
Thinking about Walter, Cody rolled his eyes. "The Great Predator Army's got all this marvelous tech. I'll believe Walter's not full of shit when he lets them pump him full of nanobots and turn him into a fluffy little bunny like he wants."
Kenny looked slightly offended. "Excuse me? Bunny sitting next to you? One who doesn't particularly like the word 'fluffy' applied to him?"
Cody laughed. "Sorry, amigo." He tried to hold it in but couldn't. "...Your cheeks are kinda fluffy though."
"I will fuck you up," Kenny joked, making a fist.
Cody flat-out guffawed.
The game resumed shortly. Cody watched close to see who'd win the coin toss this time. It looked like it was Frank again, because she lit off a sizzling kick down the field that damn near reached the Preds' goal. "That was almost a hole in one!"
"Wrong sport," Kenny teased.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm sure there's a different word for it in soccer."
Frank didn't mind that one of Ethan's guys blocked her kick. She would have been stunned if she'd made it. No, it was just to rattle them. Remind them who they were playing against.
Her midfielders and his were screwing around now, kicking the ball back and forth without it really getting anywhere. She jerked her arm at Carlos to get him in there and break things up. It worked like a charm. She admired Ethan for asking his guys to not use their species as a weapon, but Frank wasn't having Carlos act any different from the other players. She was just letting the other team's fear of skunk stink work to her advantage. A glance at Ethan told her he didn't mind. As his team skittered out of the skunk's path, the maned wolf couldn't keep from laughing.
Though when he darted in and took the ball from Carlos like the skunk had been standing still, it was Frank's turn to laugh. Her plan didn't work on all of them it seemed.
Cody growled when the skinny fox kid scored a goal. That broke the tie that'd been in place since the first half. He started paying attention again. He watched the orange uniforms scamper across the field and shouted to them in his mind, 'Go, go! Get the damn ball! The goalie's way over there! Kick it in, you slow fucks!!'
He knew this was just a game. It meant nothing overall. But still... It occurred to him that his past self from just a few days ago would never have sat here watching PREDS play on the same field as Prey. As if they deserved to be there. As if they deserved to be forgiven for everything their side had done.
Had he actually just thought, a few moments ago, that maybe these kids weren't his enemy? He thought about all the things Vera had said about First Prey and cultural reinforcement. Some of these kids might've had their First Prey already. Their mommies and daddies bringing them a Preykid, all trussed up like a Christmas present, for them to open with their teeth. As for the ones that hadn't had it yet, it'd come. Right now they might be kids playing soccer, but in a decade they'd be chasing each other for blood.
It was so easy to lose sight of that in here. Cody's head hurt sometimes.
Everything in this place tried to lull him to sleep. To a dream where everything would be okay if everyone just had more love and tolerance for one another. Reality didn't goddamn work that way. He found himself wondering again about the GPA's ultimate plan. He figured they'd keep the Fences, they'd just move them. Slice up the map and give the Preys tiny little ranches to live on. Free range. Nowhere to run or hide. They could hunt them by helicopter. All the country would be theirs and their former equals would be nothing but livestock. It's what his ultimate fantasy of conquest would have been if he were Pred.
Down on the field, Frank was waging her own battle. Her team was finally starting to show some cohesion. Her players weren't just thinking of themselves anymore. Jayden and Trent had pulled off a magnificent deflection together. After a monotonous back-and-forth struggle, her team had even made a goal, re-tying the score.
But Frank didn't feel good about it. It had been an accident. She'd seen the shocked surprise on her left forward's face when the young bull made the kick. The game was tied, but they wouldn't win on luck.
And then her jackrabbit with the magic feet had to go and get himself injured.
She winced when she heard him cry out, and was ashamed that her first thought had been the loss to the team instead of her player's pain. She watched and caught her breath as the refs stopped play. The elk guy helped her player up and she saw red scrapes all over his knee. 'Ouch...' She trotted over and patted the bunny on the back as Rick helped him hop off the field. She said he'd done an amazing job and not to feel bad. He gave her a smile and said he'd help cheer them on from the stands.
Now she had to pick a replacement for one of her best players after swapping in the most promising ones at halftime. 'Shit...' She scanned over the hopeful faces on the bench. She hated to disappoint some of the ones who hadn't gotten to play. But the mouse from Group L, who'd looked completely wrung out at halftime, now seemed as alert as ever. She gave him the nod. He hopped up eagerly and took his teammate's place.
Cody didn't see any of Frank's concerns and strategy. He only saw that the clock was starting to run out and his team had just lost a player who'd been kicking some serious ass. If the Preds won this, he knew rationally that it wouldn't matter. But it would feel like dirt ground in his face. After all the shit he'd already been through here, he'd have to sit and watch the fucking Preds prance about on the field, celebrating their win over their inferiors.
Before play resumed, Frank scanned the other team's expressions. Only a few seemed happy with what had happened to the jackrabbit. The rest looked concerned, or simply seemed to acknowledge that this put them at an advantage. When Poodle Guy dropped the ball back in, Frank charged in and took complete control of it. Her mouse was open and willing, so she shot it to him like an arrow. Their goalie swatted his shot away, but it was close. 'Let 'em think they've got an advantage now,' she thought.
As Ethan helped his team push the ball back towards the Prey's goal, he couldn't help glancing over at Frank every now and then. Her legs when she ran... She looked like she'd been carved out of steel.
He suddenly knew that, if giving in to the GPA and wearing their uniform would get him closer to this girl, he would.
Frank noticed him too, but she tried her best to keep him out of her mind. She kept her thoughts only on winning. Not to give the other Prey bragging rights. Not for her friends in the stands. Not even for her own pride. But because, when you were on the field, You Gave It Your All. It was simply what you did. If that was too complicated a reason, you didn't belong there.
Minute by minute, the clock crept closer to five. Frank wanted to march into that cafeteria with her team and hear her friends cheer. But the time to score one last goal was running out. A tie would be nice. Might even be the best thing for everyone, since then neither Pred nor Prey could use the game as a way to say their genus was better. But no one really wanted a tie. With either a win or a loss, they'd have a reason to scream. A release. A tie just left both sides feeling like, 'Oh well.'
Two of her forwards were zig-zagging the ball towards the Pred goal. Frank rushed towards them to give them all the help they could. A kick was made, but that cheetahkid blasted it back across the field like his foot was a cannon. Frank nearly fell on her ass getting herself turned around.
The ball was too close to their goal now. She tried to will her strength to her goalie and wingbacks.
Her heart felt like it turned to ash when she saw the ball streak past her squirrel's hands.
A goal.
Cheers from the Pred crowd. Frank ignored them. She looked at the clock. Two minutes left. Just enough time. A win was out of her hands now, but she could at least bring back the tie.
Jayden was closest to the ball. She told him wordlessly to get it to her immediately; she was going to make an all-or-nothing charge. As soon as the ball was hers, she became a black-and-white striped freight train.
The screams of the crowd faded. Frank could hear only her pulse in her ears. The other players were cardboard. She could have dodged them sleepwalking. She had this. She could see the fear in their goalie's eyes.
She kicked with everything she had. Everything. Every last drop.
As she fell backwards, she saw Ethan suddenly appear. Had he teleported?
Her perfect shot. The one that would tie the game. Ethan leaped up and knocked it sideways with a gravity-defying header.
Frank landed on the ground on her back and suddenly the noise of the crowd crashed over her like a tidal wave.
Her breath quivered in her lungs. She'd lost.
She opened her eyes to see one of her wingers trying for a miracle save, but Frank already knew it was over. The twin blasts of the referees' whistles came seconds later, making it official.
Both bleachers exploded. The noise level seemed to split the atmosphere. Preds howled in victory and Preys shrieked that they'd been robbed.
But suddenly, all their volume vanished when Frank heard a single word.
"Hey."
She looked up and saw a black-furred paw.
Ethan helped her to her feet. He smiled apologetically at her.
It took her a few seconds to find words. "You didn't let me win..."
"Yeah, sorry. I almost wished I had though." He rubbed his stinging forehead. "Ow!"
She chuckled. "No, no, I mean... Thank you."
He gave her an 'erf' of confusion. "'Thank you'?"
She took his paw in hers. "For not giving me the win just because I'm a girl. You did what was right for your team."
The maned wolf felt warmth tingle throughout his whole body, starting from where his hand touched hers. "You'll win next time, I'm sure."
Frank's heart fluttered. Truth be told, sometimes she liked losing. If it was a fair fight, and her opponent was skilled, and she had given it her all... sometimes it felt nice to enjoy someone else's win in second place. If Ethan had held back and let her shot go in, it would have meant nothing. It would have been tainted. Instead, she had lost honestly. That felt better than tying anyway.
"I guess we gotta go to dinner now," she said.
He nodded.
"Wanna... maybe meet later?" she asked.
Ethan grinned. Frank saw his shiny white teeth and felt a little tingle of forbidden excitement. "Yeah, I'd like that."
"Meet back here after we eat? We could kick the ball around if they let us."
"Okay. I'll be here."
She really didn't want to leave. She wasn't hungry anyway. But her team would expect her to eat with them. "I will too," she said. She waved to Ethan as she walked away.
In the Prey side bleachers, everyone was going nuts. Stomping their feet, yelling, throwing food wrappers, talking about Frank's amazing shot and that Pred's impossible deflection. All of them mourned their team's loss. All but one of them.
Cody had felt a flash of disgust when the game ended, but it was nothing compared to seeing Frank and that fox talking afterwards. The way they moved. The way they looked at each other...
In icy silence, Cody felt his blood turn to acid.
*****