"Midfield. Two-touch. Diamond drill. No mercy."
Coach Navarro barked instructions like he was preparing us for war — not morning training.
The squad lined up on the main turf, sunlight filtered through the dome's artificial sky. The grass felt springier than usual. Or maybe I did.
I jogged in place, shaking out nerves. Or energy. Or whatever was building up inside me since I saw that floating screen again this morning:
> 🎯 Daily System Objective: "Win the Midfield"
Bonus XP for outperforming teammate: Soren Velar
Speak of the devil—
"Didn't know corpses could run," Soren muttered as he walked past me.
I glanced over. Tall. Blonde. Silver streaks dyed into his hair like lightning bolts. Eyes glowing faintly — a side effect of Taurosian bio-enhancement. Expensive, custom and probably illegal outside academy zones.
I hated how good he looked in the academy kit.
"Didn't know narcissism was a trait enhancement," I replied.
He grinned. "Just don't get in my way, Vega. I don't slow down for benchwarmers."
---
Soren had always been the guy. Recruited at 13. Started every match since he was 15.
He was good — I couldn't lie. Sharp. Quick. Controlled the tempo like a conductor.
But he had one flaw. He thought he was untouchable.
Today?
He'd find out otherwise.
---
The drill began.
Two-touch triangle. Four players. One touch to receive, one to pass. Ball moved fast — too fast for hesitation.
I was grouped with Soren, Kenji, and a Zyrixian kid named Pol-Tek who played like a caffeinated crab.
First pass came to me. Clean.
I let it roll across my body, flicked it to Kenji with the outside of my boot. No wasted motion.
Kenji didn't react, but I saw the faint flick of his eye.
Second pass — Soren drilled it at me hard. On purpose.
I didn't flinch.
Took the pace out with a soft trap. Used the elastic in my control to roll it back through a gap between Pol-Tek's legs.
> GOAT SYSTEM: "Ball control within 92% optimal. Balance stabilized. Style rating: +3"
The ball zipped around. No drops, no heavy touches. Just rhythm.
By the third rotation, I wasn't thinking anymore. Just moving, reacting and anticipating. The GOAT System wasn't feeding me answers like before — not exactly.
It was something deeper now.
It was like I already knew.
---
Navarro blew the whistle. Switched the groups. Moved us into live-play.
4v4 mini-match. Half-pitch.
He pointed. "Vega. You're starting. Center mid."
A pause. A ripple of heads turning, Soren's smile vanished for half a second then came back sharper.
"Guess we're sharing," he said. "Try not to drown."
---
The match started fast.
Soren and I in the middle. Kenji at the back. Musa up top.
Opposite us? Tek. A Gralko defender built like a wall. And two Martian twins who moved like synced drones.
It was chaos.
Tackles flew in. Passes zipped. The Martians pressed high, hard.
And yet—
Every time the ball came to me, it stuck.
Every time I turned, there was space.
And every time Soren demanded it, I already knew he was out of position.
I didn't freeze. I didn't second-guess.
I simply orchestrated.
Threaded passes. One-touch layoffs. Little flicks that made defenders bite.
At one point, I picked up the ball at half. Tek charged in — arms too long, legs unpredictable.
I feinted left. Used the trait.
Elastic Control: Active.
Tapped the ball behind my standing foot, spun out, left Tek sliding into the turf like a rookie.
> GOAT SYSTEM: "Style bonus. Inspired by Ronaldinho. Confidence level: +7%"
I didn't celebrate, I just passed, ran and moved.
The play ended in a goal.
Musa scored. But the pass that unlocked it? That was mine.
---
Soren didn't say anything until the second water break.
Then he walked up to me, dripping sweat, eyes narrow.
"You've been practicing," he said.
"Isn't that what we're here for?"
"No," he said quietly. "Not like this."
I shrugged. "Maybe you're slowing down."
He didn't smile, didn't even speak again but I could feel it — the shift.
He was rattled.
---
Coach Navarro pulled us in at the end.
He looked at his holopad. Then at me. Then at Soren.
"Scrimmage match this weekend," he said. "Against the Lunar Titans."
Pause.
"Starting midfield: Vega."
Soren's jaw clenched.
I didn't say anything.
Didn't need to.
Because in that moment, under the fake dome sky, surrounded by aliens and talent and pressure—
I had just won my spot.
---
> 🏆 SYSTEM UPDATE
Mission Progress: 5%
Trait Strengthening Unlocked
Rival Detected: Soren Velar
Hidden Buff Triggered: "Playing With a Chip on Your Shoulder"